


The Knight and the Huntress

by Knight_of_Shades, Lamia_editions



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Adult Ghost, Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Smut, F/M, Female Grimmchild (Hollow Knight), Ghost is king, More characters/relationships added as they appear, Post-Godmaster (Hollow Knight), Radiance is forgiven, The Knight is Called Ghost (Hollow Knight), The Pale King Being an Asshole (Hollow Knight), Vessels have gender
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-27
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:08:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 41,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24411802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Knight_of_Shades/pseuds/Knight_of_Shades, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lamia_editions/pseuds/Lamia_editions
Summary: Finally, peace has been established in Hallownest. Radiance's infection was finally over and a new era for the insects has arrived.Even with everything going perfectly, a young spider still felt restless and the same was true for the saviour of Hallownest, both had a feeling they didn’t recognise.Follow the story of the spider that never developed feelings and the Vessel that never felt feelings.(Warning: The story is focused on Ghost x Hornet, if you don't like this couple, don't read the story. In the animal world cases of incest or homosexuality don't matter. The Vessels have genders in this story.)
Relationships: The Knight/Hornet (Hollow Knight)
Comments: 75
Kudos: 175





	1. The beginning (part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What if the battle between the Light and the Void had a different end?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be merciful to me, it's my first fanfic

In Godhome where the Godseekers lived, there was the greatest of battles they had ever witnessed. Radiance, the Old light that they so adored and proclaimed as the God of gods, was facing an insignificant insect that was made of Void. He had been victorious over all the gods they worshiped, from the King of Nightmares, to the Pure Vessel himself who shared the same Void in his veins but trained and raised to his powerful prime form; that damn knight had defeated each of them and it looked like he would also triumph over the Radiance. However they still believed that the Old light would overcome this foolish insect and crush that small shadow. But they didn’t know, Ghost was much more than a simple Vessel.

Ghost was facing Radiance at her very peak, but he wasn’t intimidated by that. He had already faced the whole Hallownest just to get to her. He not only carried the Void Heart, Ghost carried the will of all the insects, trusting that he would end this nightmare. Ghost had discovered his past and saw that his "father" the Pale King wanted a pure Vessel, a being without thoughts and emotions. The Pale King never cared about his children; he just wanted a Vessel that would end the problems he caused when pretended to hold a holy and noble cause. Ghost never loved him or saw him as his father, but he would prove to the Pale King that he was mistaken, that a Vessel could beat Radiance and still have thoughts and emotions. Because those are what makes everyone stronger.

He had to go back to his friends, for Quirrel his best friend, for Grimmchild his dear daughter, for Hollow his brother and for his adoring sister Hornet.

The combat was reaching its climax. Radiance was getting more and more cornered by the Void. Every time she felt she was going to be killed, she moved further away from that shadow knight. She couldn't understand how him being much smaller than the Pure Vessel, was overcoming her power. She wasn’t only fighting him physically, but she was also using her mental power to affect him, she saw that he had feelings and thoughts, but she couldn't infect him, how was it possible? She was starting to get scared, she the Old Light, a Higher Being of light and dreams. She was feeling scared of a mortal who was overcoming her. Then Ghost struck another attack, the Void united under his command, combined with him and his body grew, becoming bigger than Radiance, having several eyes and another pair of arms.

Ghost had become the Lord of Shades, a Higher Being of Void.

He wasn’t just any Higher Being, he was the newest God of Gods. When Ghost was preparing his final blow, he saw something he couldn’t have ever imagined in his adventures in Hallownest. He saw Radiance, the Old Light, the mother of the moths, the one responsible for the infection, crying in front of him.

 **Radiance:** He took everything from me, he took my children, and he erased me from history. Vessel, do you think it's fair what he did? Do you think I'm the villain for retaliating?

Ghost understood what she felt. She felt betrayed, she wanted revenge, he already knew she was angry because when he hit his Dream Nail on her, he could feel her anger and it was all because of a king that wanted to be adored by everyone. If the infection hadn’t happened, maybe he would have enthralled the mantis into worshiping him, perhaps he would even try to increase his kingdom, by conquering several others. All because he wanted to be worshiped.

Ghost shared this anger with Radiance. It was because of him that his siblings were suffering. Those who were seen as failures by the king, were trapped in the Abyss sentenced to oblivion and a slow death, the others who escaped did everything to survive, but most were dead and without their Shades, scattered through every corner of the kingdom. Even the Pure Vessel, who received the luxury of living like a prince, in the end also suffered. And especially his sister Hornet, who had to witness her mother's worthless sacrifice and never got a father who deserved it.

So forcing his voice a little, Ghost spoke to Radiance.

 **Ghost: Yes, I understand now. However, your actions were inexcusable and what you did is irreparable. Are you still willing to pay for your crimes? Do you want forgiveness?**

**Radiance:** Why are you saying that? Why should I forgive myself for the terrible things I did?

 **Ghost: Because I’m going to forgive you**.

Radiance was surprised she got so easily forgiven by her opponent. She didn’t have the foresight of a Wyrm to know what was going to happen from now on, but she was sure of just one thing. For all the things father and son shared, the young knight‘s heart was not like the Pale Wyrm‘s.

The Lord of Shades extended his hand to Radiance. She was afraid, but, slowly, she reached for his hand. And then, the moment her anger left her mind, the Old Light removed the Infection from all insects. The Godseekers were wide-eyed when they beheld the great spectacle in front of them. They saw an intense battle ending in reconciliation and somehow, the light that attuned them to the gods began to emanate and covered the Godseekers and the two Higher Beings alike.

* * *

Grimmchild was in the Junk Pit waiting for her dear father. She didn’t understand why her father had left her out of this fight compared to the other times that they had faced the pantheon of the gods. Did he think she was weak? No, that was out of the question. Her father was too loving to think like that, and she liked how he spoiled her now and then. Still, she didn't get why her father had gone to fight alone, but she thought he would be fine, she trusted him. In the meanwhile, she looked at her father's body, knowing that his soul was in the dream world in Godhome. She also saw the body of the Godseeker sleeping, avoiding touching her soft belly.

Whenever she grew restless or bored, she went out to kill infected insects that she could handle, even though she had the Heart of the Nightmare, she wasn’t yet as powerful as her father Grimm. Grimmchild noted for herself that she should visit him. After all, he said he would remain in Hallownest for a while, but he would leave soon.

Grimmchild waited for his father to return in what seemed hours, until a strong glow flooded Junk Pit, forcing Grimmchild to close her eyes blocking the sudden brightness.

Radiance felt her body very sore. She didn’t imagine that a simple handshake would hurt so much and that the light of the Godseekers’ attunement would cause her to be thrown out of Godhome. Her vision was still blurred and she couldn’t believe how much her body ached when she returned to the real world. Then realization hit her, "Wait" Radiance thought, "Why am I in the real world?". Radiance was perplexed, she assumed that after being forgiven by the young knight, she would return to Hollow Knight's mind, but no, she was elsewhere, outside the Temple Of The Black Egg. If her memory wasn’t wrong and if the places still had the same names, then she was at the Royal Waterways.

 **Radiance:** I never thought being in this smelly place would make me so happy. Now, where is that young knight? I didn't get a chance to thank him and- Arg! It hurts!

Radiance, despite feeling that her strength had returned, still had her body very sore. Drawing strength from her sheer stubbornness, she soon composed herself. Then, something scorching hot hit her side and she quickly turned around. She saw a winged creature, one with red and black colours. She noticed right away, that insect was not from Hallownest and the colours had already made it clear who she was. She was none other than the new receptacle of the Nightmare Heart. And if the energy that emanated from the child was any clue, she presumed that the ritual was complete. However, there was one thing amiss. What was that child doing in a stinky and disgusting place like this? Radiance knew how the ritual worked, so normally the child should be at the side of its creator.

The scarlet child is soon ignored, because the Old Light had noticed two figures behind. A bloated Godseeker, quite larger than the others she had seen, and further down there was the young knight who had forgiven her. The little one hadn’t woken up yet, so the Old Light approached him. Grimmchild shot another ball of fire at her, but this time, Radiance teleported to dodge the attack, and being already annoyed at the whole situation, she spoke to the child.

 **Radiance:** Scarlet child, I don't know what your problem is, but I suggest you step aside from my way. I have no quarrels with your Higher Being and it’s in your best interests that I don’t trouble him, so stay away. I just want to get closer to the young knight.

After saying this, the Grimmchild started to growl even more at her. The Old Light was bewildered. But then she observed that the child was moving over to the young knight, in what was a gesture of protection, not one of a predator fighting over an easy prey. Then Radiance figured out why this child was here, after all Radiance was also a mother, or at least she used to be.

This time the Mother of the moths willed her body language to act in a less intimidating, more peaceful way, which left Grimmchild confused. The scarlet child knew that the insect in front of her was the creator of the infection, as they both had the same smell. Even if she was no match for the Forgotten Light, she wouldn’t let her father come to any harm, and yet, the Higher Being seemed to drop her guard.

 **Radiance:** Forgive me child, for the misunderstanding, I don't want to fight you. Since you're close to this knight, I believe he is your father, am I right?

Grimmchild nodded, but she was still wary of Radiance. The Old Light might not want anything to do with her, but if she was to lay a feather on her father, she would stop at nothing to protect him.

 **Radiance:** Don't worry little one, I have no intention of hurting your father. After all he forgave me for what I did and took me out of Godhome, I just want to thank him.

Grimmchild was shocked to hear that. She didn’t expect her father to forgive her for what she did. Of course it was because of her grandmas White Lady and Seer that she knew that it was the Pale King’s fault, who wanted so much attention. He wanted the moths to himself and because of that, the Radiance got so, so, furious. Not to mention, that he was responsible for trapping her father in the Abyss with his siblings, as well as letting Uncle Hollow suffer for all these years, while containing most of the infection and also left Aunt Hornet without a mother, and on top of that, he ran away like a coward, abandoning his own kingdom, leaving his subjects suffering.

So Grimmchild let Radiance approach her father, she knew that Radiance didn’t need to lie to kill someone. After all, the Mother of the moths was a very powerful opponent for her to deal with on her own.

 **Grimmchild:** I ... Let ... But no ... Hurt Daddy.... Please.

 **Radiance:** I promise, you have my word.

That said, Radiance came closer to the young knight. Suddenly, Grimmchild and she were startled to see a new glow, this time it was white with black. Ghost's small body started to grow. His head split open, freeing his Shade. But the shadow that emerged didn’t look like the little Ghost they knew. His face no longer round, it flattened and got pointer like the Hollow Knight’s, his horns elongated, with the inner points of his horns curving at the middle and the outer points in each horn standing at the end. The Ghost's body was thin but strong, similar to his taller brother. Oddly enough, his cloak had also grown with him, still covering all of his body. But the most intriguing detail, was that Ghost now had four pairs of eyes.

Then Ghost regained consciousness and started to get up, he noticed that Radiance had left Godhome with him. He also saw that his daughter Grimmchild was there too, but why did the place look smaller than the last time?

Ghost noted that Radiance and Grimmchild were astonished looking at him. One look at his body and Ghost is shocked to see that he had doubled in size.

 **Ghost: Wow, I didn't expect this**!

Ghost, startled, put his hand on his neck. That thing just now! He was astounded that he was able to speak and that his voice had such a deep sound, which left Grimmchild and Radiance even more impressed.

 **Grimmchild:** Daddy?

 **Radiance:** My, my, you're older than I imagined. I think you are now as tall as your brother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So did you like it? I know it is incest, but try not to see it with eyes full of morality, because well-known series and anime have these things and are not criticized.
> 
> Ghost's black face and gray cape look like this: https://br.pinterest.com/pin/712272497306456421/


	2. The beginning (part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As soon as Ghost forgives Radiance for everything she did, the Old Light removes the infection that was spreading in Hallownest, now there is only one question left, how are the insects, Ghost's closest friends, reacting to this?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here comes another fresh chapter for you.
> 
> Warning: For those who have read the first chapter and have not reread it, know that my new partner in this story and I have updated Chapter 1, so I ask you to reread the chapter again.

Hornet was waiting at the Temple of the Black Egg for the arrival of her brother Ghost. She thought that her presence wasn’t necessary at first, believing that Ghost could likely deal with it on his own. But she started to think that she would be a coward to stand idly by while her brother was saving Hallownest. She was a spider, a crossbreed, born of Herrah the beast, the queen of spiders and the Pale King, the former king of Hallownest. But while she loved her mother, the same couldn’t be said about her “father”. With this heritage came the responsibility of ending the infection along with her brother, even at the cost of her life. However, the inside of the Black Egg was made of Void, and even if she was the daughter of a Higher Being, she didn’t have the power to withstand its effects.

Still awaiting Ghost’s arrival, Hornet allowed herself to be lost in thoughts.

Her father, the Pale King, was a Wyrm, a being gifted with the power of foresight, but despite being able to see more than any other insect, he couldn’t recognize his own mistakes. The plan he upheld for years had failed miserably, and he was responsible not just for the death of the insects of Hallownest, his people, but also for her mother's sacrifice. All in vain.

The young spider would never forgive him. Since that day, the small spider had to grow in a chaotic world and lost her innocence sooner than she should. She considered many times forsaking Hallownest to leave her past behind. But she always remembered the words of her mother, “A spider never runs away from danger, a spider makes the danger run away.” This was from one of the few precious moments she had with her, and it gave her strength in the wake of losing her mother. With each passing year, Hornet became unrelenting, becoming the spider that would make her mother proud.

Much before Ghost came to the fallen kingdom, she had already lost faith that the infection could be contained by a vessel. But slowly, he was showing capable of unbelievable feats, giving her that spark of hope she once thought lost. Ghost had even fought against her twice and on both occasions he won. She was even surprised how often she dreamt of fighting him, she was embarrassed to admit how much he was in her thoughts. She had to concede that he was good and very skilled with a nail, maybe even better than she was with her needle, this pushed her to have more intense fights with him.

Hornet felt sibling love for Ghost, and although he was mute, she saw that he shared this love as well. Mutual admiration flourished between them.

Hornet was impressed by Ghost’s perseverance for continuing with his goal. From the moment Ghost proved to be the right vessel for containing the infection, she became closer to him as his older sister, wishing to enjoy the time she still had with him. Amidst Ghost’s journey, they would take time to hunt, to train together, everything Hornet wanted to do with her brother he would accede, and he made it clear that he enjoyed spending time with her, regardless of how it would be spent. This was how Hornet found out that Ghost had thoughts and emotions. At first she was in disbelief because the vessel didn’t act how the Pale King said it would. And yet, her heart told her that because Ghost had emotions and thoughts, he stood a chance to contain the infection. Hornet gradually allowed herself to show her vulnerable side, to be loving and affectionate with him, proving that she wasn’t so stern after all. In one of those heart to heart, her brother told her how happy he was with the name she gave him, Ghost.

Hornet was resolved to make the most of it until it was time for him to contain the infection. In truth, she had wished to have a younger brother. When she met her brother Hollow, she was fascinated by him, but the time they had together was very short, after all the Pale King wanted Hollow to be his Pure Vessel.

Hornet knew that Hollow was in there, inside the Black Egg temple. It hurt her thinking about clashing their weapons, since they had trained together, the emotional turmoil would be greater than the physical wounds she could gain. Maybe she even was one of the causes that Hollow had become impure. Nevertheless, she knew that she had to kill him so that the infection would be transferred to Ghost. She couldn't stand to lose her two brothers, but the risk of being trapped inside the temple with them would be worth it.

Hornet had been waiting for Ghost for a long while, until she felt someone approaching. At first she thought it was Ghost, then she noticed that the silhouette was very different from him. Her position was replaced to an aggressive stance, believing it was an infected insect. But before she could throw her needle, she saw that the insect raised its hands in surrender and gradually saw that her opponent was unarmed. He was a pillbug, and he looked mildly familiar, yet Hornet couldn't remember who it was. Her position didn’t waver.

**Hornet:** Show yourself! Even if you are not infected, I won’t hesitate to attack.

**Quirrel:** What was that Hornet? It's me, Quirrel. I thought you would recognize me, but I think my master's mask kind of disguised my identity.

Hornet was surprised to see that he actually knew her. She took a more careful look at him and then she started to remember. Despite the insect having told her his name, she didn’t recognize him, until she realized that he had mentioned a "mask". When it dawned on her, a smile formed on her face.

**Hornet:** Quirrel? Is it really you? Monomon's apprentice, the teacher?

**Quirrel:** That's right, Hornet, daughter of Herrah the beast and princess of Hallownest, hehe.

**Hornet:** I guess you are really the Quirrel that I met years ago. What did I tell you about calling me princess of Hallownest?

**Quirrel:** Heh, I couldn't help it. I wanted to remember the old days.

Hornet hugged her old friend from the times when Hallownest was in its golden age. Quirrel’s little banter made her recall memories long gone. Hornet had first met Monomon's apprentice when her mother and the other Dreamers met at the White Palace. Quirrel had insisted on calling her “Princess of Hallownest”, at first it was more out of respect, but soon it became a silly joke. Hornet didn't like the nickname because she would get annoyed at being called a princess, it made her feel less like the fierce heir of Herrah. Curiously, Quirrel called her Princess of Hallownest instead of Deepnest, he was one of the few aware of her blood ties to the Pale King. The little spider never liked considering herself as the Princess of Hallownest. Since her childhood this title would be a constant reminder of her sire, who never cared or showed her love. With the Pale King neglecting Hornet, she would in turn deny him her love, wishing in earnest to never deal with him.

There were few worthy of her soft side and Quirrel was one of those insects. He had been always respectful and gave her the attention she sought. Whenever her mother had to go at boring grownups meetings, it was Monomon's apprentice who played with her. Quirrel would even train with her as a hobby, which made Hornet as swift and nimble as him. Hornet innocently compared him to being as good as the Five Great Knights and faster than them, but Quirrel only replied that he only used his nail when he had no other option. Herrah had granted permission for the Queen of Hallownest and the young pillbug to educate her daughter, so Quirrel became an active participant of her tutelage, along with the White Lady when she wasn’t busy with the meetings. The spider queen wanted her daughter to be a warrior almost as fierce as she was in her youth, but she also wished her daughter to acquire manners befitting of a lady. After each lesson with Quirrel and the White Lady, she would come home with Herrah, telling her of the things she learnt.

During those times, Quirrel looked older from Hornet's point of view and she would regard him as a paternal figure, seeing as he truly cared about her. And now, comparing the Quirrel from her memories to the one standing in front of her, she observed how the clumsy and playful young apprentice had become a kind and optimistic adult. Hornet even noticed that he had kept on his head the bandana she weaved for him when she had just learnt to do so.

Hornet let a giggle pass her lips, this Quirrel was still her Quirrel.

**Quirrel:** What is it?

**Hornet:** It's nothing. Just mere recollections. You're still wearing that old bandana I made you.

**Quirrel:** Ohhh this thing here? This was a wonderful gift you gave me, I am honoured to have this sturdy cloth.

**Hornet:** It was the least I could do. You have been a friend of mine for years. But, now that I notice, where is your nail? Even if you never liked using it, you would never misplace it.

**Quirrel:** That old thing? I left it at Blue Lake after fulfilling my mission to deliver the Madam’s mask back to her. That nail was already old and worn from using it in the Wasted lands outside of Hallownest. That nail belonged to the explorer who came to Hallownest rather than the former apprentice, and when this explorer recovered his memories, he realized that he was someone very different from who carried that nail before. As such I preferred to leave that nail behind, but guess what? I'm starting to think it wasn't the best idea.

Hornet struggled between laughing at the ludicrousness of her friend or being stern with his carelessness. Quirrel was still as prone to drama as ever.

**Hornet:** Hahahah, I had forgotten how poetic you were with your decisions. I remind you, and I’m sure that you are aware as well, that Hallownest is wilder than ever before.

**Quirrel:** Ohhhh, You are right! How I wish I had a friend to help an amnesiac like me, wait, I have a friend, it’s just she preferred to attack me on sight. Twice.

Hornet almost wanted to groan exasperated for being called out on her behaviour. All right, she should have thought through about attacking an intelligent insect that didn’t want to cause trouble. However, after meeting several warriors that had refused to listen to her, Hornet ended falling into her aggressive facet.

**Hornet:** Please Quirrel, it was my duty to protect Hallownest. I did warn you that Hallownest was a dangerous place, that you wouldn’t find anything there.

**Quirrel:** If by warning me you mean hurling a needle to my face, then you did well Hornet. Considering that you could have lent me a claw earlier. I’m your friend, I would have welcomed a little help.

**Hornet:** Quirrel, I was a child. Even though we spent a lot of time together and I keep those days close to my heart, many years have passed. Of course I would end up forgetting your likeness. There were things as well that made me forget not just about you, but also about the good times I had... I had so many circumstances to deal with.

Hornet noticed that Quirrel wasn’t truly angry with her, but upset. It was the same as when they argued when younger. Quirrel calmed down and took a grip on himself.

**Quirrel:** Alright, alright, I understand. I know it wasn’t easy for you or for anyone, so I'm sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. There’s only a bunch of us that got to know Hallownest. We know how serious is this situation we are in.

**Hornet:** It's fine. Forgive me for attacking you earlier, I should have been more polite. I think my spider self was roaring for a good fight.

Hornet’s little joke dissolved the tense atmosphere with the sound of their laughs. They couldn’t stay mad at each other.

**Hornet:** But anyway, what are you doing here?

**Quirrel:** Ohhh yes, I came here because I thought I would see my friend again. This is where we met for the first time. I believe that he should appear here, sooner or later. He has an eerily resemblance to Hollow, so I assumed they could have a connection.

Quirrel had only met Hollow a couple of times, unlike Hornet, so he only called him that way because of the little spider who had "named" him. Hollow wasn’t able to speak for himself, so Monomon explained Quirrel about who he was and what Hollow was supposed to do. Quirrel pitied Hollow, because he was unable to express himself. Yet Quirrel’s friend cared about him and was a good listener, he seemed to like whatever Quirrel had to say.

**Hornet:** Your friend? Are you by chance talking about Ghost?

**Quirrel:** So that's his name? I should have imagined it was you who gave him a name... Again, hehehehe.

**Hornet:** You could say so, haha.

Hornet puffed her chest, proud of herself. Quirrel couldn't help but laugh at her mannerisms, but he had to give her credit, the young spider was good at naming.

**Quirrel:** I didn't know that the Pale King had created yet another vessel.

The moment Hornet heard that name she felt a bitter taste in her mouth. The Pale King had so many secrets hidden from his subjects and the people he trusted alike. It was up to her to unveil the harsh truth, the time had come.

**Hornet:** There is something you must know, Quirrel. And more now that the king is "dead" and Ghost is the new king of Hallownest. I see no problem in telling you.

**Quirrel:** Wow! Did he really receive the King’s brand? I can hardly believe my short friend is the new monarch. It’s a shock and saddening to hear that the Pale King has passed away. I imagined that he would be alive and trying to find a way to stop the infection. What else do I need to know?

Quirrel was aware of many secrets because of Momomon’s research, yet there were things that didn’t make it to the archives and things that Momomon wasn’t aware of.

**Hornet:** It’s about Hollow. The Pale King lied about him being the only vessel he created. The official version is that the Pale King and the White Lady placed their egg in the Abyss so the Hollow Knight would emerge from it, gifted with the power of the Void. However, it was not a single egg they placed, nor it was just one single vessel that was born from each. There were countless vessels from a myriad of eggs. Any vessel unacceptable for the King's standards was seen as a failure and thrown back into the Abyss to die. The White Lady was ashamed of her role in that plan so she exiled herself when Hollow could no longer contain the infection. Meanwhile the Pale King fled like a coward, the afterglow of his power can be felt throughout Hallownest, but his presence had left this kingdom many years ago.

Quirrel was surprised about the existence of more vessels, but the shock of knowing their real past was greater. He had always admired the Pale King for his noble cause and for facing hard decisions, but this was chillingly cruel of the King, even compared to the worst insects he had known about. Hornet’s hatred for the Pale King was no secret to anyone, then again she was stunningly serious with her words. To accuse the King of such an atrocity... Quirrel was afraid to ask, but his innate curiosity took the best of him.

**Quirrel:** How many vessels are we talking about, Hornet?

**Hornet:** If Ghost’s words are to be believed, the Abyss is covered in a vast maze of shells left by the countless corpses of the vessels.

**Quirrel:** W-WHAT!? No, that can’t be true! He couldn’t have slaughtered his own children. Even if they were made to have no feelings, that’s a massacre of innocents. He couldn’t have done that!

**Hornet:** There’s still more. The Pale King concealed his true identity. He is a Wyrm, and as such, he had the power of foresight, of peering at the future. Yet he couldn’t avoid the tragedy that befell on Hallownest.

**Quirrel:** The Pale King was a Wyrm? But you just said he’s dead. I thought that Higher Beings couldn’t die.

**Hornet:** In the case of Wyrms, when they die, they don’t truly do so. They transform into a new being. When the Pale King saw his plan fail, he died and took on a new form to escape. That’s the coward he is.

Quirrel was trembling, shaken by the horrible revelations about the former monarch of Hallownest. Hornet felt guilty for putting him through that plight, but he and the rest of survivors of the old Hallownest deserved the truth. They needed to know who they were actually worshiping. She, alongside with Quirrel, had to guide the rest of survivors.

**Hornet:** I'm sorry Quirrel, you truly looked up to him, but this is the harsh truth. Ghost was one of the few vessels that had survived when he was thrown away by the Pale King, he is the only vessel besides Hollow that’s alive at this- WHAT THE?!

Hornet was interrupted by the sudden quake under their feet. The shaking was so strong that they almost fell to the ground. Barely getting a hold on the situation, Hornet and Quirrel caught a glimpse as the orange vines surrounding the Black Egg temple were shrinking and returning to their natural colour as the infection was disappearing. Finally, the orange light was gone, and the sickly sweet air became more breathable. The tremors stopped. There was only silence coming from the inner chamber of the temple.

**Quirrel:** Wait! Could it be…

**Hornet:** Impossible, Ghost hasn't come here yet, there’s no way-

Those words had barely escaped her mouth when she was cut again by the door opening in an explosive fashion. From within the Black Egg temple, heavy footsteps could be heard, followed by the rattling of chains falling on the floor. Hornet and Quirrel hadn’t recovered yet from the initial surprise, turning at the new intruder, Hornet drew her weapon instinctively. At the entrance, a tall figure materialized from within its shadows. The insect had a thin and weakened body, his cloak grayed from dirt, turned into rags by time, was covering the lump where one of his arms should be; his remaining arm was holding his nail, once an exquisite pale ore craft damaged by the lack of maintenance. He had a crack going from his eye to the top, created from the pressure of keeping the Radiance contained.

This was the appalling state of the Hollow Knight, the Pale King’s vessel. And yet, despite it all, he managed to hold himself together, casting an imposing posture. But, the moment he glanced at the two insects in front of him, all his determination crumbled, collapsing into the ground.

**Hollow:** Quirrel... Hornet…

His words were barely a whisper before passing out. Hornet was the first one on her feet, rushing to Hollow’s side.

**Quirrel:** What’s the meaning of all this? What’s going on? Did he just speak? How’s that possible!? Hornet did you listen!?

Hornet was at a loss of words, absolutely astonished. Tears started to run freely, and finally closed the gap to embrace her sibling.

**Hornet:** Brother! You are alive!

**Quirrel:** Hornet, this isn’t time for hugs, he needs medical help. We have to take him to a Hot Spring, I know one nearby.

**Hornet:** You're right, he needs us. Help me to carry him.

The spider and the pillbug took the unconscious Hollow by the shoulders and legs. Thankfully, his body was lighter than it looked, making a hastily exit from the temple of the Black Egg.

* * *

Dirtmouth, the peaceful town, was home to a handful of insects, it was quiet and scarcely populated until the circus came. The huge scarlet tent stood out like a sore thumb in the outskirts, with many insects moving in and out of it, making a living of their show. The Grimm Troupe worked under their master Grimm’s gaze for a purpose; the show was a façade for feeding the Nightmare’s Heart.

Grimm was outside of the tent, restless. It wasn’t like him to be so concerned. He didn’t expect one of the Wyrm’s “crafts” to do the summoning for the ritual, but here they were. The little one had assisted in the dance of the ritual, and Grimm had never felt so alive in such a long time. The complexity of the dance was so high, many others had failed miserably, consumed by fiery flames. The knight had been a wonderful partner, delightfully matching his movements, and to boost he was a concerned caretaker to his daughter, tending to her with love and affection. He was surprised that a being made of Void was capable of love.

The small vessel had been very kind, even if Grimm’s demands had been forced on him, seeking the flames to feed Grimmchild. He had been doing what was asked of him without refusal. Grimm was touched to see how he felt fatherly love toward his daughter as well. None of the previous participants of the ritual had been so kind towards their protégé, including his own, so, so long ago. Grimm couldn’t be more pleased, having such a skillful dance partner. Perhaps in the vessel’s chest beat a heart similar to the Nightmare’s Heart, yet it felt so similar and so different from the Pale Wyrm’s own heart.

His daughter truly admired the small vessel. She was, perhaps, the first in the line of Grimm that had grown attached to her guardian. Having never dealt with this circumstance, Grimm wondered how both would react as the ritual went on to another cycle.

Grimmchild was just as he was in the past, and he couldn’t avoid feeling guilty about ending her innocence once the ritual was over. He would have to take his daughter with him and teach her everything he knew, like those before him and those who would follow his footsteps. He had to tell her the truth about him and her, and her children, and their predecessors.

This child had been developing faster than the others, which ironically, had made him feeling proud. At last, the final act of the ritual took place, with him becoming the avatar of the Nightmare’s Heart, becoming the Nightmare King Grimm. He had high hopes on the small vessel, and he delivered more than enough.

The vessel hadn’t yet recovered consciousness from the fight, when Grimm took a decision that would change the ritual forever. Instead of leaving him and taking his daughter to faraway lands, the master of the troupe refused his instincts and traditions, he stayed. Something about his daughter was unlike anything he had seen before. The power that emanated her, the heat she exuded, there was no doubt that she had become the perfect receptacle for the Nightmare’s Heart, the perfect vessel it sought for so long. If she played her cards right, no other ritual would ever need to take place. She could lead a life that no other Grimm had enjoyed, making him feel thankful. He could leave his daughter by the young knight’s side.

The preparations for departure were already in place, along with the arrangements meant for when he would turn to ashes, as that had been the will of the Nightmare’s Heart since the first Grimm. It was a matter of time until his severed connection to the Higher Being would result in his demise, his remaining moments were numbered.

He was still caught in his musings, when an earthquake shook Dirtmouth. Bugs were stumbling and tripping, trying to keep their balance. Then, he felt it. The infection was suddenly gone. Grimm couldn’t help but smile at the new development of events. As if called by a silent command, Brumm came to his side.

**Brumm:** Sir! The baggage was placed as you asked, everything is ready for us to leave this kingdom.

**Grimm:** Change of plans Brumm, have you felt that?

**Brumm:** Yes master, it seems the infection is over, but why the change of plans?

**Grimm:** I believe that we are in for a much more wonderful show than any performance we had the pleasure of represent. And I want to be there to see it. So Brumm, go unpack, we will be here for some more time.

**Brumm:** What? But sir, I just...

Grimm’s incandescent red vicious glare had dulled due to him losing his connection to his deity, yet he still managed to instil fear even into his kin. He hadn’t completely forgiven his most “faithful” member of the troupe.

He had caught on to the plot Brumm was scheming to banish the troupe from Hallownest. Had that conspirator forgotten how he was chained as well to the Nightmare’s Heart? Just as him. He even had the gall to involve the little vessel in his plans, to make him destroy the anchor connecting them to the waking world. The little knight, despite knowing how painful would be the last stage of the ritual, refused to go through Brumm’s proposal. Was there anything that wouldn’t make Grimm respect even more the Wyrm’s spawn? He truly gained a friend in him, someone to count on, it was only natural that Grimm would open up to him. Once the ritual finished in its most magnificent fashion was then when he learnt his new friend’s name, Ghost.

Yet his relationship with Brumm went in the opposite direction. Brumm saw everyone in the troupe as a mere slave to the Nightmare’s Heart, including his master. Grimm was aware of this sentiment, so he devised a suitable punishment. He would make him feel truly like a slave, obeying every order from every member of the troupe. This was, in Grimm’s opinion, a bit faint of a punishment, he truly wanted to make Brumm suffer. Yet Ghost had come in his defence, arguing that Brumm’s intentions were to free Grimm from the pain of the ritual, that his treason came from compassion for him. Ghost had advocated for Brumm because he was also his friend, to which Grimm acceded, even if he thought it meant letting Brumm off the hook.

Ghost and Brumm’s bond was created in those moments he sat by the musician’s side to listen to the tune of his accordion, which left Brumm taken aback, none of the previous participants of the ritual had bothered to simply enjoy the company of any member of the troupe. Brumm decided that he would trust Ghost, if he thought that following the ritual was the right thing, he would hold no grudge, not even towards his master. Nevertheless, the same couldn’t be said about Grimm.

**Grimm:** Brumm? Don’t think your little indiscretion is past water. Although, the ritual _has_ been fulfilled, and I feel generous enough to overlook it. You, after all, are my most “loyal” companion, are you not?

**Brumm:** I-I’m at your service master!

**Grimm:** That’s what I thought. Now, don’t stand there like a fool and get to work. We need to prepare for the next act.

**Brumm:** Yes, sir!

Brumm scrammed from his master’s presence, not wishing to further irate him. Grimm huffed, and turned to contemplate the horizon. Now that the ritual was finished, his daughter would soon develop her legs, he could leave her standing on her own two feet, literally and figuratively. He had the time to properly get involved with Hallownest’s affairs. Where would she be? That enchanting beauty. If it had been worthy seeing her once in his lifetime, what would be meeting her a second time?

**Grimm:** Sorry, my friend. I’d like to celebrate your triumph with you, but there’s a certain Lady that cannot wait. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, did you like it?
> 
> As much as I would like to do the second part, talking more about Ghost with Radiance, I wanted to show you how the other insects are reacting to the end of the infection


	3. The beginning (part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Radiance is forgiven by the Ghost and after the Old Light removes the infection, how are the insects that lived so alone in this vast kingdom?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter that talks about how the other insects are reacting to the end of the infection, and then we can move on with the story.

Hidden in a nook, in a secret passage between the Queen’s Gardens and Deepnest, the Mask Maker was diligently working on his craft. Masks of all shapes and sizes were scattered in the abode, while he was creating some more on his own. For him, this wasn’t a chore, he created them for the pleasure of creating.

In the past, he had actually lived in the heart of Hallownest not because of the influence of the Pale King with his bacon, but because he felt it was his duty to provide the citizens with no mask. Mask Maker was aware of the true nature of the Pale King, about his previous incarnation as a Wyrm. Yet his devotion was to the very darkness of the Void. Very few had survived to contemplate the rise and fall of Hallownest with their own eyes, from the days of the hivemind of Radiance to the free will of the Pale King and their fight; Mask Maker’s life had been even previous to that. Such longevity wasn’t natural among his kind, the reason was found in the traces floating in his workshop. Void.

The citizens of Hallownest were grateful for his service, in no short time, news ended reaching the Pale King. Being the prideful monarch he was, Mask Maker’s activity would tarnish his claims of him being the only reason for the bugs’ precious mind he granted. No matter how much the Mask Maker pleaded his concern was to simply help others, the Pale King had no option but to exile him from Hallownest. Deepnest, on the other hand, welcomed him with open arms, adding yet another tally to remark the conflict between both kingdoms.

No matter how many hardships the Mask Maker faced, he would make sure he delivered those masks, regardless if the receiver was a subject of the Pale King or not; they needed a mask and he would provide. He would never stop making masks, no matter how much trouble he found with the Pale King. It was a lone work.

After many years of solitude, one peculiar visitor entered his shop. This one wasn’t in need of a mask, yet he bore another face under his own, one of shade. A vessel. He wasn’t looking for a mask, but for his knowledge. It had been ages since someone came to him asking for something else than masks. And he was itching for a conversation. The little vessel was a good listener, soon making him fond of the small companion. It wasn’t everyday that he met another being so deeply tied to the Void, but was he even aware about it? He would instigate more his visitor’s curiosity, prompting him to search the truth underneath his visage, underneath Hallownest. Telling him directly would likely elicit denial or disbelief; it was a truth he had to find for himself. He hoped that when he came back, he would be open to understand the Void, to understand his own nature. And the Mask Maker couldn’t be happier to help his kindred friend.

It had been a long while since he last saw his small visitor. It didn’t worry him, the arduous task in front of him was no small feat, so patience was the only way. If only he had news about him... A strong earthquake shook his chamber, finishing his train of thought and forcing him to drop him tools. His hands were a flurry, catching in midair the falling masks from the walls. Once over the initial confusion and disturbance, he felt it. Mask. He needed to make a mask, the Void demanded for it. Not just any kind of mask. Of shell or of Pale Ore? Inspiration struck, and he couldn’t be more excited. This one was a priority. He started working on the mask the Void asked him to craft.

 **Mask Maker:** Has my Lord finally arrived at this world? Then I shall create a mask for him. This day shall be rejoiced!

* * *

In the bowels of the kingdom, in the Ancient Basin, rested the corpse of the Broken Vessel. Since the day his head broke, Lightseeds would come and made their home of his body. Macabrely playing with him. He had no voice to cry his distress, his body was but an empty shell, an inviting nest for the living creatures. Against his will, the Lightseeds would puppeteer his body, forcing him to fight passerbys, much to his horror. He was a failure, he had been one since he hatched the egg and didn’t make it to the entrance of the Abyss, but at least, this was a blessing in disguise. Being “impure” meant that he could spare himself to have feelings, he didn’t need to deny them, didn’t need to tuck them away. It was pointless pretending to be a pure vessel.

The escape from the Abyss had been nothing short of a miracle. His brother, one of the two who actually got to the top, managed to find a way out after the King closed the door. His brave brother, tried to help the vessels that had survived the fall and those who hatched a little too late. The intricate labyrinth would take them to Deepnest, where more of them fell prey to the predators and spiders. Despite it all, his brother would still care about the others, inspiring him to push forward. Until the day they took separate paths, he would remain in Hallownest, and his brother would traverse to the Wasted lands. He didn’t understand, but he didn’t question him either. They would meet again, years later, when his Shade had left his body and the Lightseeds got inside him. As happy as he was to meet him again, the pesky occupants of his body forced him to do what they did to intruders. He raised his nail against his brother. Only this time, his brother put an end to the gruesome abuse of his body. He was free. Just like he had freed him from the Abyss. However, his soul still remained linked to his body. At the very least, the Lightseeds would not harass him anymore.

The timeless existence he had was broken up by a tremor. One that shook the entirety of Hallownest. He was but a corpse that couldn’t truly die, waiting for a death that never came. His Shade had left him long ago, and without it, he couldn’t face his regrets and find peace. Damned infection! Pustules and vines were everywhere, casting an orange glow, air thick with a sickly sweet smell. And then, something changed. The vines wilted, the blobs exploded. The Lightseeds shrivelled, deflating and curling their legs; Broken Vessel felt oddly satisfied to see his long time tormentors croak. The infection was over.

A tune made him shift his attention, aware that it was only him the one that could hear it. It was a melody from even before he hatched from the egg, and there was only one thing capable of making him remember it. It was floating above him, a black figure with glowing eyes, there was no mistaking it seeing its horns. His Shade was back from the Abyss, and he braced himself for the retribution it would bring on him. The Shade drifted to him. And then, it got back into his body.

His body twitched, as he regained control on his limbs. Everything hurt and ached, his head was still cracked. But somehow, he was alive. How could he be back? How was possible that in spite of his broken shell his Shade remained within him, not seeking a way out? Using his nail as a clutch, he stood up, slowly making an exit from the chamber he had fallen long ago. With all his willpower, he carefully climbed to the upper levels of the Ancient Basin. He had to thank him personally, the one responsible for ending his torture. In some way, he felt that there was more to thank him for, even if he wasn’t sure what it was.

 **Broken Vessel:** My…Brother…

* * *

Secluded in a corner of the Queen’s Gardens, the White Lady was isolated from the rest of the world. She had been denied her most primal instinct, to have descendants. She felt frustrated to no end, but the shame of her own actions left her in place. Just like in the past, her inaction to do something, hurt her; nevertheless, the past had also been beautiful. If only things were like when she and her Wyrm got together. Such a charismatic and brilliant leader, loved by every insect, there was simply no one that could hold a candle to him. It had been a blessing becoming his queen, it had been a gift being adored by her subjects. But this love wasn’t enough for her, it wasn’t the one she sought. She wanted children, born from their love. It didn’t matter if they were many or just one, she wanted to take care of them. She wanted her troublemakers, her loving, her rebellious, her playful children. Her little sprouts. She wanted to love unconditionally. She would often think about how would be the nursery for when the time came. Yet her daydreams of being a mother were never fulfilled by her Wyrm. No matter how much she brought up the topic, he would find ways to steer the conversation away. She didn’t ask much of him, knowing already his opinion on having children, but it was disheartening to never have a proper heart to heart.

Then the infection broke, and he came up with the vessels plan. She was exultant to have her Wyrm in such a carnal way, one that would allow her to breed. She was told that those critters wouldn’t be able to feel emotions, but even if her affections would be one-sided, she didn’t mind.

The first vessels were created, their eggs dipped into the inky substance of the Void. When they hatched and the White Lady saw them, they were… normal. Beautiful kids even. At least she could hardly tell the Void was running in their veins. She trembled at the thought of putting them through the Path of Pain, but the Pale King didn’t yield. They fell and they died, and they were thrown into the Abyss. The White Lady couldn’t hold her tears, her heart broke into pieces. She wanted to scream, to beg him to stop, but she didn’t. She witnessed her children die. She would find solace in her Gardens, from the recently annexed Greenpath. She welcomed the flowers as her daughters, making them her confidants, hearing her plights. How was it possible that her husband didn’t feel pain?

The king was growing desperate, he needed a completely hollow vessel. More Void was taken to his workshop, more eggs were submerged into it and for longer periods. And finally they started placing the eggs in the Abyss. The place was, after all, as unforgiving as his Path of Pain. Surely, a vessel who made it to the entrance would be the perfect one. More vessels died trying to reach the top of the Abyss, shortly after hatching. Until one did. This vessel, accepted by the Pale King, would become the Hollow Knight. The White Lady was elated. Finally! After so many deaths razing her heart, she had a son that was spared. But the King didn’t let her near him. He or his guards would ensure that she didn’t get close to him. She faced the Wyrm, demanding to have time with their son. Nothing would prepare her for his rebuke. He told her he had caught her singing a lullaby to their eggs, before they got placed into the Abyss. This had put in jeopardy the plan, one mistake he expected his chosen vessel would not be tarnished from. Since their argument, there would be no more visits to her bedroom, there would be no more children to be conceived. The Pale King had no need for heirs, because _his_ reign would be eternal.

The only comfort for the queen was knowing that she wouldn’t need to sacrifice more of her own children. Hollow was the perfect tool that would save the kingdom.

Then, came Hornet. The White Lady was appalled with the Wyrm’s actions. Even though she had been informed about it and even she reluctantly agreed, the Pale King gave Herrah the beast a descendant. She understood that it had been part of a deal, one that would make a truce between Deepnest and Hallownest, but it was a nuisance. It wasn’t only that he had a child with another female; the beast would have a daughter and she was denied the only offspring that survived. She wasn’t even angry at Herrah for her dalliance or at Hornet for being the Pale King’s. In fact, she envied Herrah’s luck. She had such a beautiful kid…

The half-spider would be taken to the White Palace to meet her sire. It was at those times that the White Lady gradually started to nurture her as her own daughter. Quirrel also became part of Hornet’s tutelage, teaching her demeanour, etiquette… among other things. The happiness she achieved from fostering Hornet, was unmatched. She could have been denied from raising her own spawn, but with her, that itch was soothed. She wasn’t hers, but the little spider was her daughter.

Many years later, disaster struck again. The Hollow Knight failed, and the infection spread without stop. The Wyrm’s plan had failed. While he went to hide into dreams, the White Lady took refuge with Dryya. She and her bodyguard ran for the Gardens. She hoped that by diminishing herself, Unn’s influence would safeguard the place, as she was the previous Higher Being of those lands. The queen burrowed into a cocoon and put binds on herself, so that her only temptation, her desire to reproduce, was curbed. Not even the king’s promise for children was going to make her emerge, regardless if it was the real king or a ruse of the Old Light.

 **White Lady:** Was it worth it? To fall in love with the Wyrm? At the very least, I am content with the joyous memories we had.

The White Lady always had been a calm and composed woman, yet there were times when she would break and cry. When the pain she had to suppress would become unbearable. So many tears were shed, that numbed her vision. This was yet another self-inflicted punishment. If it wasn’t for Dryya’s company, she would have lost her mind long ago. Her best friend was a rock solid defender in a world that was slowly turning not so different from dreams.

It had been years since she last saw the Hollow Knight set foot into the Black Egg temple. Dryya had come to check on her regularly, but it had been some time since she last came to visit. What could be keeping her so occupied? She heard of the cast out mantises making progress towards the gardens. However, Dryya’s defence was as secure as the bindings she had put on herself. Ohh, what would she do for having some company… She felt it. A vessel. In the wide net of her roots traversing Hallownest, one of her children arrived at her gardens. It was so close. Until he came to her presence. A clear figure showed up before her in her fading world. He reminded her so much of Hollow when he was a little sprout. Like the other vessels, he was mute. His lack of words was replaced for a great aptitude for listening. The White Lady soon found out that the vessels could actually communicate, they weren’t empty statues. It had been when her tiny spawn came closer to her and hugged one of her roots that weren’t covered by her bindings. She gulped down a sob that threatened to escape her throat. It had been the first display of affection she had in years. Then his hand had moved in patterns across the exposed surface of her root. Small gestures, repeating and stopping. The White Lady didn’t understand what the little one was doing, until she figured out. Words. He was writing words.

_“Mama.”_

Her tears flooded her face, unable to hold her emotions anymore. After years of sadness permeating her tears, they now were formed from sheer happiness. Her roots stirred when her child called her mother again. It was now that she resented the restraints she had put on herself, she wanted to hug her son, shower him in kisses and love and tell him how much she cherished him. The tears that once took her vision, gave it back to her. Her son jumped up to her body and climbed to her face, as he got close, he nuzzled her cheek. She was so happy, that she almost forgot that vessels weren’t meant to have feelings, when she asked her son why he had them, why he didn’t try to repress them to face Radiance, he said: "Feelings... Make me... stronger".

The White Lady felt a cold sweat when he said those words. Radiance couldn’t possibly have tempted his mind yet, could she? No, she didn’t feel a trace of infection in him, his presence was as dark as the Void with the silvery light of Soul; he wasn’t tarnished like the Hollow Knight. With a tight smile she asked where did he learn that. Her son began to tell her of his adventures in Hallownest, happy to be the one talking. He told her of how he arrived at Hallownest, of the time he met his best friend Quirrel, how he met and fought Hornet, finding out that she was his sister. He told her of the several friends he made along his travels. So many bonds that Radiance could have used against him, and yet the Old Light couldn’t get a hold on him and his yearnings and fears. The White Lady relaxed, letting go of her worries. She kept asking him more about himself, and he told her of how his sister gave him his name, Ghost. The White Lady considered that it was a fitting name, for both his cute looks and the disturbing nature of his existence. Ghost’s stories made her forget about her pitiful reality, her life full of suffering and sadness, his words became a balm for her heart.

In one of her son’s visits, he brought along a new creature. The White Lady froze when she saw the winged thing, knowing fully well what and who she was. A Grimmchild. The vultures of the Grimm Troupe were back in her kingdom, no doubt to reap the scarlet flame born of the suffering the infection caused. She wouldn’t allow such a feast for them, wouldn’t let the mistakes of the past be repeated. Ghost caught onto her disdain for the Grimmchild, and asked his mother to please be nice to his daughter. That word made magic on the White Lady, her desire for family overpowering like a giant wave her qualms about how her son considered the Grimmchild his offspring. Vessels were created within the Abyss, the most barren of places for life, they were unlike any being before, so her buried fear of the vessels being unable to have brood evaporated, at least partially. Soon the Grimmchild captured her heart, the little critter was so just endearing and sweet, she would melt at her tiny coos. Truthfully, she had desired to have grandchildren as well. In the few days that the White Lady had with her son and granddaughter, her heart was eased of the pain that filled her for many years. It saddened her to hear that her son had to go and continue his mission, but his duty couldn’t wait, he couldn’t ignore the task that the kingdom implored.

Before leaving, he wrote on her body. “I ... I'm going back ... With more ... Stories for you ... Mom”. She thought sombrely that those were beautiful words, but knowing how the plan for stopping the infection was meant to go, she was aware of how futile they were. Nevertheless, she said that she would await for his return, that she was eager to hear more of his stories.

The White Lady was left alone again. No matter how much she entertained the idea of her son coming back, she was conscious that it was unattainable.

 **White Lady:** Ghost, my dear son, even though you are a strong and determined warrior, you are still as naive as a child. I’m happy that you can still hold some hope. I cannot know the pain that you will have to face, but I can only wish that you will be able to endure it. I will never forget you and my granddaughter, you were the best things I-

The White Lady had her musings interrupted by the rumbling all around her, the decorations of her roots dangling uncontrollably. How was that even possible? Her spread inside the earth around Hallownest was tight, shielding from such a great earthquake. Then she noticed the air, not just the air in her chamber, but all around the kingdom was perceptibly clearer. Her eyes widened. That could only mean one thing. The infection was over. Her heart shattered, grieving the sacrifice her son had to make. He had fulfilled his duty as a vessel. Her vision was blurring with tears when she saw on the corner of her vision her dear old friend and loyal knight Dryya, bowing before her.

 **White Lady:** Dryya, it’s wonderful to see you after such a long time. I was aware you were busy fending off those infected beasts, but how come you didn’t pay me a visit earlier? Have you felt that just now? Is that why you have come down here?

 **Dryya:** My Queen. Yes, I felt that. The infection is over. Say, your Majesty, has the Old Light faded? How is the Hollow Knight holding? Could you possibly tell me if you feel something in your roots? 

The White Lady extended her conscience through every fibre of her. Her World Sense gave her unexpected news. Her son Ghost was alive and outside of the Temple of the Black Egg. The Radiance was still alive, but there was a different air about her. And finally, the Hollow Knight, was still alive, yet… why wasn’t he in the temple? She couldn’t feel the Old Light within him, in fact, she couldn’t pinpoint her location, much like in the days the infection started. The Queen was perplexed at the sensations she gathered, she also was extremely pleased to know her children were still alive, feeling renewed hope. The infection was created from the rage of the Mother of moths, what could have triggered that change of heart? Ever since the Wyrm ensnared the moth tribe, she anticipated it would be a mistake. She wondered how such an offense was mended. 

**White Lady:** Dryya, this is great news for all of us. I’d like you to bring my son Ghost to my presence. If possible, bring the Hollow Knight as well, he must be so weak from being in his prison for so long. I’d understand if he’s feeling too unwell, he doesn’t need to attend. Let him recover his strength.

 **Dryya:** Forgive me, my queen, but I’m afraid that won’t be possible. Unfortunately, I cannot obey your orders, even if I wished to. I’m terribly sorry, but this is something your majesty will have to do without my assistance.

 **White Lady:** What are you talking about, Dryya? What do you mean...?

White Lady stopped herself when she noticed that her knight was emanating a light around her body. Her vision was still blurry, but after concentrating and straining her eyes, she could see Dryya more clearly. Dryya always had a hard front, rarely disclosing her emotions in front of others. It was only with the White Lady that she opened up and smiled. However the expression she bored wasn’t one the White Root knew. It was a sad smile. Then the White Lady realized what the energy around Dryya was.

 **White Lady:** This is essence... No! I mean, are you...?

Dryya's smile got even sourer. The Queen grimaced and mourned her dear friend’s demise. Yet another bug close to her heart was taken from her.

 **Dryya:** I never left your side, even if I wasn’t able to push back the traitorous mantises, I made sure they would never reach this haven. I couldn’t come before because the thought of putting you in danger if I left my position was too much to bear.

 **White Lady:** I’m sorry Dryya, I didn’t want to send you to your death. If only I could have hidden better, if only I didn’t-

 **Dryya:** My Lady, don’t blame yourself. Forgive my impertinence, but you did nothing wrong, you weren’t the one who ordered me. These were orders from the King of Hallownest, and I hardly blame him. This was my duty and I decided that I would protect you even if it cost me my life.

 **White Lady:** But it’s unfair. You didn’t deserve to die. You have a golden heart and others need you.

 **Dryya:** I’m but the shield and sword that protects my Queen. Your benevolence is far greater than my sense of justice and I’m sure that Hallownest will heed your words again. Now it’s your children that need you.

 **White Lady:** They need me?

 **Dryya:** Indeed, Your Majesty. They are alone in this kingdom, and your guidance is what will push them forward. The days for your self-imposed punishment are over. The time has come to act and turn into the benevolent goddess you have always been.

 **White Lady:** Even if that's true, I can't leave you here. I know your body is out there, if I get out, you'll be alone.

Dryya floated to the face of White Lady and held her with both hands. The fiercest of the Five Knights gave her a smile that White Lady hadn’t seen in years.

 **Dryya:** My dear and gentle Lady. I am already dead. Do not feel sorry for me, feel sorry for your children who spent years without a mother and father at their side. Even if my body is left behind, I will always be with you, my queen, and I will protect you.

 **White Lady:** Dryya... I will miss you...

 **Dryya:** And I will miss you too, my Lady.

Dryya let go of the queen, floating back her spirit dissolved into essence. The light of the chamber dulled, with the phantom gone and the Root down with sorrow at her final goodbye.

A small gleam returned to the Lady, her mind already made up. She struggled, forcing to break her bindings, stirring and yanking her roots from the floor and the ceiling. It was painful. But her desire to be reunited with her children gave her strength. She pulled and pushed even more, her breath increasing into elaborated takes. The tugging of her roots was so violent, that new tremors reached the whole Greenpath. Finally she freed herself from her own clasp. Only the wraps on herself remained, and those were held together with a seal of binding. She couldn’t break them alone. She wished the King or Dryya were nearby. Then something fell through the holes to her borrow, a petal of a flower. Undoubtedly, this has been caused by her previous struggling, disturbing the nearby flora. The pale petal looked familiar. It was one of Ze’mer flowers. She crawled to it, getting closer until it touched her bindings. Thankfully, this seal wasn’t like the Dreamers’ seal, or it wouldn’t have worked. Finally, she was free.

Her power had returned. She was luminous with an ethereal white light, unseen in ages. She concentrated and her stature shrank, leaving pieces of bark behind. Sadly, she never thought she would ever leave her exile, so she didn’t prepare a cloak for the occasion. She still wished to look dignified, the wraps she had used for binding would do for an improvised dress. She took a step, wobbly from all the time she had confined herself, and fell less than gracefully to the ground. Her weakened legs were all she had to leave.

 **White Lady:** Come on, White Root, you can do it. You have to see your children, they need you.

She summoned her strength once more, the thought of her children giving her the motivation to keep pushing forward, crawling, rising, standing and walking. With great effort, she managed to reach the surface, panting, using the walls as a clutch. She looked back at the place she had been a recluse. For a moment she wondered if this would be the right decision. Shaking her head, she turned to the path away from the garden, continuing her arduous walk.

 **White Lady:** Ghost! You’ll have to forgive Mom for breaking the promise... But I can't wait to hear your stories. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, did you like the chapter?
> 
> These chapters speak only of the most important characters in my view on the end of the infection, the rest of the characters will appear throughout the story.
> 
> This is the White Lady's new body after she came out of exile: https://i.pinimg.com/236x/bb/af/e2/bbafe2ac9ba29eb09143c4389bb95502.jpg


	4. The search for the Mask Maker

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fate always surprises us, sometimes it makes you meet different types of people. Other times, it offers challenges that take you further on your journey. But one thing is certain, it offers us new discoveries. How do Hallownest's insects see fate?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another new chapter guys.
> 
> And for those who still don't understand, Ghost's lines are in bold because he is Lord Of Shades, so he will have more prominence compared to the other vessels.

As soon as Ghost put his hand on his neck due to the surprise of knowing he had a voice, the Royal Waterways trembled. Unused to his newfound stature, he almost fell to the ground if not for the help of Radiance holding him. When Ghost regained his balance, he noticed how nonchalant the moths’ mother was, as if she had been expecting the tremor, with an effort he spoke.

 **Ghost** : **You know what is causing this tremor, don't you?**

 **Radiance** : Yes. This just now, is because the infection is gone. With this, the husks can return to their eternal slumber and those still living should be able to come to their own senses. All they will feel at the most is as if they have been dreaming all this time, they will not have memories of all that happened during this time.

Ghost was relieved to hear those words from the Old Light. He couldn't imagine how quickly the infection disappeared from the ancient kingdom. For a moment the tremor felt like a bad omen, but he was happy that Radiance was willing to change and face the crimes she committed.

 **Ghost** : **I thought the infection would last. That you would only compromise on refraining from creating more. Truthfully, the only way I expected to remove the infection was if you were killed. You are really willing to change, instead of being apathetic, you took the first steps.**

 **Radiance** : Listen. The infection was created from my attempts to recover my children from the Pale Wyrm, from the despair of being forgotten and being on the verge of death; in fact, it was created as a by-product of their resistance to seeing my light, rather than something I planned. My children had distanced themselves from me, but now that I see that trying to reach their minds is not going to bring them back to me, it is simply useless.

The new Higher Being remembered something, and he searched in his insides hoping his stuff would continue intact, and thank goodness his things were still there, including his immense amount of geo, but what he was looking for was something much more important than money. The Knight of Hallownest noted amusedly how his hand had proper fingers now, long and slender, but he stopped admiring them because he had something important to deliver. Ghost held out his hand so that the moths' mother could take the trinkets the vessel was offering her. Radiance observed how two things would come out of his shell, a nail handle without a blade and a shield-like charm. When she took notice of what they were, she felt overwhelmed, almost to the point of bringing tears to her eyes. The Old Light recognized the tools from her tribe. She herself had made them for her children, and knew whose those tools belonged to.

 **Ghost** : **These belonged to a very dear friend who gave me the right to call her grandmother. Because of these gifts, I managed to go further than I could be able to... However, the time has come to return them to their former owner, even though she is no longer among the living, you are the closest to her.**

 **Radiance** : These are the Seer's dreamnail and the dream shield... My dear daughter... Unlike my other children, she stayed by my side and denied the Pale Wyrm's offerings... I should have been taking care of her, but I was just so angry at having lost those who detached themselves from me, that I paid no attention to those who remained close to me…

Radiance wept knowing that she could have kept the Seer alive. If only she hadn’t been so blinded by hatred and rage perhaps she would have spent her time with her beloved daughter. It was now that she realized that it wasn’t just the citizens of the Pale King who suffered from her wrath, those she had loved were also affected by her selfishness. The infection had been killing the people of Hallownest and beasts alike, and as a result, the few survivors, in their blood thirsty avenging endeavours, blamed the moths for it. They went as far as to ignore the kidnappings done by the Soul Sanctum scholars to experiment on them, waving away their disappearances.

The Old Light didn’t cry that day, but now she was bursting into tears holding the two tools close to her face, regretting that her children's pain had been more because of her than because of the Pale King. Facing Ghost, she didn’t see the reflection of her pale enemy or the ancient fiend of the depths either, but someone she might call "friend". She spread out her wings to Ghost, returning him the artefacts, which caught him by surprise.

 **Radiance** : Keep them... This dreamnail and this dream shield once belonged to a certain moth. And now the traces of her existence in them are gone along with her. Now their wielder is a kind vessel. I don't see anyone fit to be the owner of these two tools but you... Use them the way you think is right, Knight of Hallownest.

Ghost’s gladness couldn’t be expressed with words. He would have never imagined that Radiance would allow him to continue using the moths’ tools, the last token of their civilization. And just like the day in which he received them in his hands, the Void given form took them and put them in his cloak. 

**Ghost** : **Er... Thanks, I think. But what now? What do you plan to do?**

 **Radiance** : I don't have anything else to do. I don't even have a place to go. My home has always been the world of dreams, but returning would mean I would be the only being in there, and I don't want to be alone... Would you mind if I go along with you wherever you will have to go?

 **Ghost** : **I wouldn't mind at all, it would be a pleasure to have more company.**

 **Radiance** : Well then. My thanks. So tell me, what do you plan to do now?

Ghost rubbed the fingers of his hand together, feeling the chitin starting to leak some void.

 **Ghost** : **First, I have to go to the Mask Maker. He is the only one that, as far as I know, can create a mask for me. I’m not sure if he will accept my order, in fact I don't even have an idea on what I should use as payment.**

 **Radiance** : I may ignore what his current location is, but we shouldn’t worry about that. He makes masks for the pleasure of it, and it’s his calling helping those who need a mask to achieve an enlightened mind. Undoubtedly he will provide you with a mask. His service to the kingdom of Hallownest stands still, regardless of who is at its helm.

 **Ghost** : **I’m surprised you know of him!**

 **Radiance** : He is one of the last of the Void worshipers. That old insect has been here ages before my arrival and of course before that monarch fancying Wyrm. That bug never showed any fear to my light or when the Wyrm created his kingdom above his abode. His self-imposed duty to help the Hallownest insects with no faces endured it all. My children never had such a need, but we found his job commendable… if somewhat foolish.

Ghost muttered inaudibly to himself.

 **Ghost** : **Just how many people of the golden age of Hallownest have I found?**

The Old Light paused, realizing she wanted to ask something about her company.

 **Radiance** : Ghost, there’s something I find puzzling about you. How is it possible that you and Hollow look so… different? Did that demented Wyrm create more vessels after the second wave of infection?

 **Ghost** : **Well, we're actually the same age, I'm only a few seconds older than he is. I also wondered why, even though I was born around the same time as Hollow, I still looked like a child. So when I left the Abyss, I heard that Hollow got tall because the Pale King raised him. I think- I think my body remained small because I didn't feed on Soul as my brother did. In fact, I wasn't aware that I needed to eat or even _what_ I had to eat. I am not a normal insect, the growth of my body was stunned by the emptiness inside me, only when I returned to Hallownest I started to feel that my horns were getting longer and I had no idea why. I know very well that I am not normal. I'm- I'm not an insect at all!**

During his explanation something broke inside Ghost. As much as he liked being a knight and fighting, a part of him wished for a simple life. This life was denied on the very reason of his birth, cursed with a void stained body, unable to feel the same as other insects. He could never have a normal life, because he wasn’t normal in the first place. Radiance felt the emotions coursing through the knight, causing her maternal instinct flare to life. She couldn’t stand idle at his distress, and so, she embraced Ghost with her wings in a warm hug.

 **Radiance** : That's not true. You are an insect, I know that, you have a soul, a heart and a mind that is all yours. No one could have done everything you did to save me from myself. You have outgrown whatever the Wyrm expected you to be, becoming more powerful than me, and still you decided to follow the path of forgiveness and compassion instead of treating me like an obstacle. You are an insect as much as any other one.

Ghost truly needed to hear those words, because he returned the hug, however the Old Light had to contain a grunt of pain. Ghost’s hug was squeezing her hard, almost as oppressively as the void he was made of, yet she had to cut him some slack. Vessels weren’t acquainted with giving hugs, so she had to endure Elder Baldur's like hug. And maybe tell him how a hug was meant to be given.

 **Ghost** : **Thank you Radiance.**

 **Radiance** : You're welcome... M-! But Ghost, could you loosen your hug just a little bit? I-It's too strong...

 **Ghost** : **Ah! Sorry**.

Ghost immediately released Radiance from his grip as asked. The Old Light was finally able to regain her breath. If the young Higher Being had no one to be taught how to hug someone, he could end up killing someone with his uncontrollable strength.

 **Radiance** : There’s still more I want to ask, young knight. How is it possible that you are able to speak so properly well despite never having a voice to speak?

 **Ghost** : **Well, about that, it's because I've been listening to a lot of insects along my journey and despite not being able to actually produce any sound my throat and mouth vibrated when I was repeating their words, and...**

 **Radiance** : And?

**Ghost: I was… sort of secretly training to speak, even though I wasn’t able to, hehehe.**

Radiance stared at him, incredulous at the lame reasoning he had for his speech training and while Ghost was trying to uphold her visual duel, it was a lost battle. Ghost was thankful for his inky black visage, because otherwise he would be all red from embarrassment. And yet, the more he saw Radiance’s face the more he felt like covering his; finally accepting defeat and smacking his own face hiding it from her.

The silliness of the situation proved too much for the Old Light, and she burst out laughing. Ghost was rendered speechless and she was going to make a comment, yet there was someone who had more than enough of being ignored, interrupting in the loudest way she could.

 **Grimmchild** : HEEEEEEEYYYYYYY!!!

The two Higher Beings got startled by the shrill cry of the Grimmchild. The poor thing had been bored out of her wits, puffing her cheeks and directing at them a mean look. Despite trying her hardest to look intimidating, the other two were charmed at how cute the nightmare child looked.

 **Grimmchild** : Not fair… daddy ignores… very worried.

Then the other two understood what the fuss was about, they were so caught up in their conversation, that Grimmchild had been worried about Ghost, his body had gone through an extraordinary metamorphosis and he hadn’t had a proper rest. She needed his father's attention for reassurance. Ghost couldn't help but find so endearing how attached his daughter was to him. Not wanting to leave her unattended any longer, he approached her.

 **Ghost** : **Sorry for ignoring you, Ruby.**

 **Grimmchild** : Ruby?

 **Ghost** : **Yes, I couldn't tell you, but when I found out you were a girl, I thought that giving you a name similar to your father's didn’t suit you very much. So after thinking for some time, I decided to name you after a jewel that’s the same colour as your father's troupe. Do you like this name for yourself? It’s alright if you don’t want it, I'll understand.**

Ghost wasn’t even done talking when his daughter, with eyes shining from sheer happiness, quick as a flash, bolted directly to his face hugging it, blocking his vision and almost making him fall to the ground. Radiance was holding herself back, trying her best to not laugh again. 

**Ruby** : I LOVE IT!!!! RUBY, RUBY, RUBY!!!! I’M RUBY!!!

 **Radiance** : Ohohoho! I could just be watching this all day. But I would rather move to a far less stinky place. Which reminds me.

With a large, blinding puff of essence, Radiance shifted her shape, making her body smaller, similar to Ghost's size. The new form had changed her wings for a pair of arms, with hands and fingers. Her metal-like tail was transformed into legs for walking. Her body was clothed in a yellowish white dress that ended with a grey fur around her neck. Her face, formerly covered with feathers and dark and with two yellow orbs, was now white with two orange eyes with a hue not too unlike the infection, her real nature and ties to the plague were impossible to hide after all. Thankfully, Ghost noticed that those eyes didn’t hold the rage of any infected creature he had come across. Radiance’s new appearance now had hair like the songstress Marissa, only Radiance’s was creamy white. The general body shape of the Old Light was curvy, comparable to a fertility goddess like the White Lady, attractive and alluring. Ghost found himself staring, in part because of curiosity towards the new body and in part because of her having a very pleasing physique, despite being unaware of how that even worked. He, despite having seen many beautiful females, knew next to nothing about romantic relationships or what was meant to be eye-catching for males and females. Radiance, noticing how Ghost was gawking so innocently, felt sorry for the day he would lose his naiveté.

 **Radiance** : Hopefully this new form, I will look friendlier and more approachable to the people. I wouldn’t want them to be afraid to see me. There’s as well the fact that someone might recognize my old visage from their dreams when I tried to push my way onto their minds. And I very much don't intend on causing a ruckus just because they happen to recognize me.

 **Ghost** : **I see. I think we are good to go now.**

 **Godseeker** : WAIT!!!!

A new voice, grave and clicking, startled the group. The Godseeker had finally awakened. She anxiously crawled towards them, as she was too bloated to be even able to use her own legs. Ghost, feeling pity on the distressed insect, closed the distance to her. The Godseeker bowed professedly at his feet, or at least, what could be passed as a deep bowing, because it gave the impression that she had fallen and took the opportunity to pass it as a gesture of bowing.

 **Godseeker** : My Lord, please forgive this insignificant bug for disturbing thine departure. But We wouldst wish to accompany the great God of Gods, along with the Old Light and the new vessel of the Nightmare’s Heart.

 **Ghost** : **Understood, I’ll accept having more company. Let me help you, you have been imprisoned for many years, I doubt you will be able to walk by yourself.**

 **Godseeker** : Nay! Please, o God of Gods, thou shan’t lower thyself to touch Us. We are unworthy, shame beyond shame if We permit the heir of the majestic Pale God to-

The Godseeker was interrupted with a bang. Ghost had stepped violently on the floor, his strength had become so immense that he ended up cracking the ground he was standing. On his back several tendrils appeared, swinging frantically. Everything around him darkened noticeably, even the void started to appear on spots because of the aura he emitted. Radiance and Ruby, despite not being the focus of his anger, were a bit scared, while Godseeker felt her life draining away, cowering at Ghost's fury. Then before allowing the situation to get out of hands, he regained his composure. The new God of gods calmed down, he let the tendrils retreat to his back and the light returned to the place. When he spoke, his voice was full of authority.

 **Ghost** : **My apologies for my attitude, yet I need you to know this, Godseeker. I have no problems with you, however I don't wish to be compared to the Pale King. I may be his creation, but he is not my father and I'm not to follow on his steps.**

Then he added.

 **Ghost** : **And also, stop calling me God of Gods, it's Ghost and just Ghost. I don't want to be revered like the Pale King, the only thing I want is to help others without anyone seeing me as a deity to be worshiped.**

 **Godseeker** : W-we beg thine forgiveness o G-... Ghost.

The Higher Being of Void, now appeased, took the Godseeker by her side. She meekly complained, grumbling something about how he shouldn't do that, but she gave up, not wanting to provoke him again. Ghost started walking as if he wasn’t bothered by the humungous weight of the Godseeker.

 **Ghost** : **We can go now.**

He started walking ahead and soon after, Ruby and Radiance followed, four different insects on a journey in search of the Mask Maker.

The Broken Vessel was limping, his goal was crystal clear for him. He had to leave, to escape, to get away. The Ancient Basin, where silence and loneliness reigned, would not be his tomb, he had enough of that. Even though he was wounded, he continued on his way. Luckily for him, he didn’t find any enemies that would hunt and kill him. Broken Vessel had pieced together why, with the infection gone the beasts were pacified and the wandering husks weren’t roaming the tunnels. The plague really was truly gone from the ruined realm, this wasn’t just some wistful thinking, a make-believe for himself to soothe the fear of living in such a chaotic world, he finally allowed himself to hope for something more.

Yet his resolve was put to test once more, when he reached a point where there were several spikes on the floor as well as the ceiling. On the other side of this immense corridor was the way towards the surface. Jumping to the other side was out of the question and he was too weak to be able to use his nail and bounce to the other side. For the young vessel, the hell that had been the infection hadn’t been able to crush his hopes, but now reaching the destination was making him crumble.

 **Broken Vessel** : Why?... Suffer?... Living... Useless... Dying... Better...

Broken Vessel felt sorry to be alive. Why did he have to keep on living if he wasn’t even able to get out of that place? Was it a punishment from someone who cursed him? Was it a cruel joke, “living is not for the weak”? Broken vessel couldn’t grasp “why” he still clutched to life. It wouldn’t take longer until his skull formed more cracks until the point in which it couldn’t hold itself together and finally fall apart.

 **Broken Vessel** : Impossible... Impossible... Impossible...

And yet, this wasn’t the first time he had been on the verge of despair. The Broken Vessel remembered the time when he had been trapped in the Abyss.

It was a place where hope simply didn't exist; with no laws or a sense of order. It wasn't even guaranteed that the strongest or the most cunning prevailed in the most unforgiving place in the world, and not a single vessel could be able to do anything to change it. His siblings and he were certain of it.

However, his older brother, on the other hand, defied those circumstances, full of determination to give a chance to the other vessels.

Once everyone was born, the oldest among the vessels climbed again and reached the gate of the Abyss, the only path to the light of the outer world. The door remained closed, never meant to be unlocked again. Yet, he didn’t come just to stare at it. His brother threw himself against the unyielding door, trying his hardest to knock it down. But the only thing he managed was banging the gate. The loud noise resonated and echoed across the Abyss. All the other vessels, including him, thought it wasn’t worth it. His older brother was attempting an impossible task. All that was left was to wait, a long and agonizing death that would take ages to come. Days turned into weeks and then into months, but his older brother kept on hitting against the gate. There were times he even got to the point of cracking his shell. And then he learned the ability to focus and heal, despite the limited soul he could gather from the scarce non sapient insects. He would continue bashing the door, without pause. The noise of the constant hits to the gate was incessant, echoing uninterruptedly. Some vessels had already succumbed and left their Shades. The yet to be Broken Vessel felt that his time was near. He was just waiting to finally stop his suffering.

And then, a miracle happened. At the upper levels of the Abyss the earth shifted with a roar, waking him and the other vessels from their morose trance at the bottom. When they looked up there was a light. Again their instincts pushed them to reach the light. On his way upward, he found his older brother on the floor, next to the gates. He had fainted, and the door hadn’t bulged at all. But the light was coming from a tunnel higher above. After countless strikes against the door, he had provoked a landslide, opening a path that would otherwise be obstructed.

The tunnel twisted and turned convoluting, almost indistinguishable from what existed in the Abyss. However, the moment the vessels peered inside, they knew it was their way out. The wind was blowing.

Everyone looked at the older vessel, admiring him for not losing hope, cementing himself as a hero for his younger siblings. Broken Vessel was sure that if his older brother could speak, his words would be: "Don't lose hope, you can overcome challenges as long as you can try".

Broken Vessel shivered, recalling his breakout. This moment was not unlike what he had gone through those years ago. The Broken Vessel made up his mind. He wouldn’t let history repeat itself. From now on, he would defy the challenges he faced. He couldn’t just sit down and wait for his demise, he wouldn’t wait until someone saved him again. But what could he do? He was thinking and looking down the hall of thorns, when suddenly he had a weird sensation running through his arms. Raising them, he saw astonished how tendrils had replaced his arms. But instead of panicking, instead of considering the “why” of his arms had changed shape, he looked at the hall and then at the tendrils, until an idea came up.

 **Broken Vessel** : Don’t… Lose… Hope…

Broken Vessel used his tendrils to hold onto the edge while he went back, stretching his tendrils until he reached the point where they hurt, tensed to return to their original size. The plan was to use them as a slingshot and catapult him forward, reaching the end of the corridor. In all honesty, it was a terrible idea, absolutely crazy, but it was the only thing that Broken Vessel could do to get out. Then he closed his eyes and lowered his head, mentally bracing himself for it. He hoped to be ready for it, it was all or nothing and this time he was going to bet everything he had.

 **Broken Vessel** : IT'S POSSIBLE!!!!

Broken Vessel finally jumped and threw himself forward. He felt the wind wiping around him furiously form the sheer force of the fling. He braced himself as he passed among the thorns, all around him was moving so fast that his eyes were seeing a constant blur. And then when Broken Vessel noticed he had crossed, seemingly out of danger, he found out he hadn’t thought on how to stop. The force of the impulse was so great that he kept flying, until he slammed against a wall. The pain of the full body impact almost made him pass out, every piece of him was flaring in agony and the wall was splattered with void. Yet despite it, he felt exultant. He made it! He believed in himself and overcame the dreadful corridor. He wondered if it was that same feeling his brother had when he managed to create that tunnel.

Broken Vessel continued advancing while he still had some adrenaline in his body.

He came across the empty space where the White Palace had stood in the past, only an ornate gate remained, along with a creature wearing pale armour. The Void golem had fallen apart long ago, and now it was part of the ruins of the kingdom.

He felt anger bubbling up inside him, it had been one of those soldiers the responsible for his broken skull, for his downfall, in spite that, he ignored it, he had more important matters to worry about than a dead soldier on the floor.

Finally, before his legs could give out, he arrived at a secluded station with large open gates and a bell waiting to be tolled. He knew how the stag stations worked, and, with the last of his strengths, he rang the bell. He lifted his nail, pitifully hitting the bell. Within seconds the place rumbled with footsteps, and a stag beetle came out of the gate.

 **Old Stag** : So little one, what will be our next…

The Old Stag fell silent when he saw that the insect he was talking to was not his friend. He resembled his friend, but he was slightly taller and with different horns, the poor lad’s skull was cracked and something dark was peeking through what suspiciously looked like a hole. The old beetle was flabbergasted at the truly sorry state of the young insect, almost at death’s door.

 **Old Stag** : Young one, it seems like you need urgent help! Do you need to go somewhere to treat you or shall I take you to a place with physicians?

Broken Vessel was too weak to properly speak to the old beetle, so he approached him fearlessly and touched his face. The Old Stag was expecting that the boy in front of him would be mute like his little friend, but he was surprised when the stranger had a voice.

 **Broken Vessel** : Away... From here... Mask... Heal...

The Old Stag didn't have to be a genius to understand what the young insect in front of him wanted and seeing how weak he was, how in need of help, the Old Stag couldn’t just be a bystander. So he nudged the little traveller, carefully using his horns as a pincer of sorts and moved his head to put him on his back.

 **Old Stag** : If my memory serves, I know of a place that has someone who can help you fix you. I transported him myself when this kingdom was still on its heyday, do you mind if I take you to him?

After standing still for a while waiting for an answer, Old Stag realized that the poor guy had fallen asleep on his back. He chuckled lightly and trotted away, slowly getting to a full gallop. Even at high speed, he made sure that the young boy didn't wake up from his sleep.

 **Old Stag** : I don't know what you had gone through to put you in such a deplorable state, but I realize that you are a great warrior for staying firm on your journey.

Old Stag mumbled it more to himself than to the young lad. Even though he couldn’t hear him, Broken Vessel felt happy, because he finally managed to overcome the impossible just because he believed there was still hope.

On a Hot Spring in the Forgotten Crossroads, Hornet and Quirrel finally managed to stabilize Hollow from his wounds. The vessel was immersed in hot water and healing, slowly. Meanwhile Monomon's apprentice was sitting on the bench nearby and the spider princess was outside guarding the entrance from any possible menace. Thankfully for her nerves, nothing remotely even dangerous had come close. She had been relieved when she saw Hollow emerging from the Black Egg Temple, alive and without the infection, and then shocked when he revealed that he was able to speak. She had observed halfway to the hot spring how the most beastly insects had become pacified and the sentient ones were dizzy, acting as if they had been sleeping for a long time. Quirrel advised those to go to Dirtmouth, explaining that they had several houses where they could rest and the residents could fill them in on what was going on. He and Hornet wanted to explain the situation to those poor insects, but they had more pressing and important issues at hand. They were tense, waiting, and hoping Hollow could wake up. The young spider had told Quirrel that she would watch over the entrance to the spring just in case any infected insect were to bother them. However Monomon's apprentice knew she was only outside because she wanted to process everything that just happened. His own thoughts and worries were not so different from hers either. He had the impression that Hallownest was finally at peace, but he preferred to keep it to himself. Then he noticed Hollow was squirming. Quirrel held his breath when he heard a very quiet scream coming out of the vessel. Hollow started to shake violently, making the water splash frantically. The broken knight was moving convulsively, unaware of his surroundings, fight or flight instincts flaring up. Quirrel bolted to his side, trying to calm him down.

 **Quirrel** : Calm Hollow, it's okay, I'm Quirrel.

When Hollow heard the well-known voice, he turned his face to the origin of the sound and found an old friend from his time at the White Palace. He relaxed and with a lot of effort he tried to pronounce.

 **Hollow** : Quirrel... Friend...

 **Quirrel** : That's right. You gave us quite the scare back there. Haha.

Hollow tried to get up, however with his drained strengths, he fell back, making a small wave in the water. Quirrel was able to catch him on time, Hollow noticed how Quirrel placed his body back gently.

 **Quirrel** : You are still very weak. Get some rest in the Hot Spring, my friend.

 **Hollow** : Contain... Infection… Father...

Quirrel felt his heart sink at Hollow’s words. He himself hadn’t recovered yet from what he had heard about the Pale King, and he had the suspicion that Hornet still hid some things about him, although that was enough for the moment. After watching how Hollow wished to serve the king to the point of sacrificing his own life, even in his weakened state. Quirrel felt pity for him, for the life chosen for him and how he pushed himself to follow those orders. He couldn’t think of a way to tell it to Hollow. Hell, how could he be even able to break him the news when he was still struggling to come to terms with them? The vessel had been already suffering after staying trapped for years in the Temple of the Black Egg. Quirrel could not imagine how painful it would be for Hollow if he found out the truth.

"But Hollow doesn't have to know right now", he mused, so he only dared to answer him about the infection.

 **Quirrel** : Don't worry about the infection, Hollow. I don't know what happened, but it seems that the plague has vanished from Hallownest. You can rest and regain your strength. Soon after that, we will meet an acquaintance of Hornet. She said this mask maker may be able to fix your mask.

Hollow had been a little uneasy at first, after imprisoning Radiance for so long in his mind, he panicked when her presence was gone from his head, almost as if she had never been inside. The vessel thought she had managed to escape and feared that she could wreak havoc in Hallownest with no one to stop it. Then when Quirrel said that the infection was no more, he calmed down, wistfully thinking what could have made it dissipate from Hallownest. With those thoughts, the vessel could relax, even if it was just a little. With all the commotion, he had barely registered that he had lost one of his arms. Hollow was lucky he could still wield a nail, otherwise, he would have considered himself to be little more than a deadweight. His face was also hurting, when he ran his hand over the exact point of the pain, just about his eye and extending to his forehead, he found a nasty scar that split his shell. The eye itself was stinging as well, so he closed his other good one to check. The vision was blurry, but he could still see with it rather decently, he likely wouldn’t need a patch for it. Nevertheless, he decided to put aside any worries about his injuries. For now, he would take advantage of the feeling of being healed and he would think about the opportunity to have his mask fixed.

The Hot Spring was a balm for his wounds and the warm water was extraordinarily pleasant, somehow it was different from the baths he had at the White Palace. Hollow felt he could stay here forever, this was his first time in a hot spring, and he was enjoying the experience. The water seemed to massage his whole body, easing all the tension. Suddenly, Hollow started to feel strange, although it was a very good sensation and he wanted more, the vessel felt refreshed, and... Excited? Hollow did not recognize what he was experiencing, in fact he didn’t understand why he was allowing himself to feel anything when he should be hiding it. However his rational side resolved that since this was a positive new sensation, he could see where it took him. Then something strange stirred between his legs, it was neither painful nor uncomfortable, and it seemed to be stretching. When the vessel touched it, it was pulsating. He flinched the moment he made contact with the elongation, it was just so sensitive! He closed his eyes and hissed, overwhelmed. Slowly, Hollow opened his eyes, eyeing the growing thing between his legs. When was it going to stop stretching? He had never seen anything like that in his life. When he grasped it gently, he groaned. It was just too sensitive, but somehow it felt addictive, making him want to play with it. He just had to probe more whatever it was connected to him. Yet, from his time at the White Palace, he had the urge to hide it. Back then he couldn’t let his guard down because an idle movement, a distraction from hearing an order, a stray thought, would reveal that he wasn’t pure. This thing was the result of letting himself go, and he suspected his father wouldn’t approve this development. Then, Hollow remembered Monomon's apprentice was near him, and turned around, wishing to continue investigating whatever it was on his own, undisturbed by Quirrel. When he saw Quirrel's look of utter shock, his heart was going to burst.

 **Quirrel** : Oh, Wyrm!!!!

A moment earlier, Quirrel had sat on the bench when he saw Hollow relaxing. He was also a bit tired, but he had to stay awake to watch over his friend. After a while, he heard a guttural groan coming from the vessel. Monomon's apprentice thought he was in pain. At least Hornet and he had made sure to clean the wound on his arm and had it stitched so it wouldn't get infected. Quirrel turned around, worried about Hollow’s ache. Yet as soon as he looked at the vessel, his concern turned to astonishment, nothing could have prepared him for the scene ahead. Hollow had a huge phallus and he was moaning from the touches he was giving himself. Quirrel was aware that staying in the Hot Spring for a long time made insects aroused at times, but the real reason for his shock was that Hollow had a sex, something he was told the vessels couldn't have. And judging from the face Hollow made, he didn't know he had it as well. Quirrel concluded that this may be the first time Hollow had felt arousal or that with all the weird incidents going on in Hallownest he ended up getting one. The pillbug was so flabbergasted, Hollow saw him dropping his jaw and widening his eyes. Quirrel also felt somewhat humiliated, because hypothetically comparing his own size with Hollow's, the vessel, previously presumed without sex organs, would be larger. Hollow’s penis could be easily twice the size of Quirrel’s. Monomon's apprentice fell on his knees feeling defeated. He could only bring himself to ask.

 **Quirrel** : Hollow... you have genitalia. Are you a male?

Hollow was at a loss figuring out Quirrel’s words and reactions, yet seeing how Quirrel behaved, he started to think that what was going on with him wasn’t good. He vaguely recalled the word Quirrel had used, and how the context for it was something along the lines of being either gross or an insult. Hollow noted his face warming, but he wasn’t near a fire or with something blanketing him, so why did it feel so hot? It was then that the both of them heard footsteps outside the Hot Spring entrance. Quirrel raced to the entrance, he had to obstruct Hornet from seeing such a display from Hollow.

 **Hornet** : Quirrel, Hollow- WHAT THE HELL, QUIRREL?!

Hornet had grown tired of watching, so she decided to go and check inside. To her surprise, Quirrel had sprinted from his position to block her path to the inside of the hot spring. She noticed Quirrel seemed very nervous, his expression contorted into fear. Much to her annoyance, Quirrel was moving along with her, effectively obstructing her view to Hollow.

 **Hornet** : Quirrel, get out of the way. I need to see if my brother has woken up or at least if he's recovering well.

 **Quirrel** : Oh, yes, he's fine. You don't have to worry and I think you don't want to…

 **Hornet** : How come I cannot see him, then? He's my brother, and I haven't been with him for ages. I have to make sure he's okay.

Hornet tried to shove aside Quirrel, but he was adamant on blinding the young spider from whatever was going on inside. The problem was that the entrance itself was rather large, so he couldn’t just stand in the way, Hornet could slip by his side easily should she actually attempt it. Yet, at the very least, he had to protect her from the indecent view that was her brother’s predicament. However, even though Monomon's apprentice had always been nimble and swift, he could not be faster than a grown up Hornet, who managed to get past him. In a desperate last effort, Quirrel grabbed the spider princess by her cloak. In any other situation, Hornet would have killed anyone without a second glance if they dared to touch her dress. Since it was Quirrel the one offending her, she just tugged her cloak out of the pillbug’s hand, making him slip his fingers from the silky cloth, finally releasing it from his grip. Unfortunately, she miscalculated the strength to free herself, with the force of the pull she ended tripping and falling into the Hot Spring, making a splash. Quirrel could only think "Oh no…” He braced himself for the upcoming screams and embarrassing situation. Hornet surfaced out of the water, looking pissed because of her friend. She had defiantly ignored Quirrel’s attempts at restraining her, Hollow was under her care, and she was making sure he wouldn’t die. When he faced Hollow she was happy to see that he was finally awake. She wondered what Quirrel was freaking out about then.

 **Hornet** : Hollow, my dear brother. I am so glad to know that you are faring well, take as long as you need to heal. Soon after, we will-.

Hornet's words died when she looked down. There was something she had never seen in her life, yet she was able to recognize. Form Hollow’s loins, an erect cock was standing proud in front of her. Her mind went into a frenzied panic. She was horrified to be face to face to Hollow’s erection, wondering how on earth was possible that he had a sex when she had been told vessels had no genitalia whatsoever. The young spider was getting dizzy from having that giant monster right in front of her. Hollow was already apprehensive because of how Quirrel had behaved with whatever it was, but when he saw the look on his sister’s face, he froze, wanting to dig a hole to the Abyss and remain down there for the rest of his life. However, the damage had already been done. Hornet got redder than her cloak and soon after she passed out, falling again into the Hot Spring water. Hornet floated in the water totally unconscious. Quirrel jumped from the edge and took his friend in his arms, thinking to himself "I tried to warn you", then he glared at Hollow who sank his whole body, keeping his dick under water and embarrassed beyond words. The apprentice of Monomon already knew how this was going to end and he walked over to the bench carrying Hornet with him and laid her on it. Quirrel pointedly averted watching at Hollow’s direction. Truth be told, he couldn’t blame Hollow, it wasn’t his fault, but after such a scene like that it was kind of hard to say something afterwards. Finally, Quirrel groaned.

 **Quirrel** : Hollow... I’m afraid we're going to be here for longer than I anticipated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the new look of Radiance: https://66.media.tumblr.com/62b67fbbbeba8e21539289dbb1f609ac/dbed3b859caef25a-2f/s500x750/2af40a8e9bd52d01e12af147040953e422cd4520.png (I love Radiance fanarts designed by Mint Ivory)
> 
> Now my friend and fanfic co-creator has something to say to you kkkk
> 
> Lamia_editions comment: Hollow has a cock!!! Hollow has a cock!!! He is a male now!!!


	5. The mother of the mantis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A tribe that knows only strength and honor, stands before a queen who has a lot of maternal love in her heart and never had the chance to share it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's another chapter for you.
> 
> SEE THE FINAL NOTES!!!

In the Queen's Gardens the White Lady was staying still. She had fatigued quickly both from getting rid of her bindings and changing her body’s size, her severe lack of movement in such a long while had also dulled her stamina, leaving her breathless, but the determination to see her children again gave her strength, she would not faint from exhaustion. If she had been in better shape, the Queen of Hallownest would have been appreciative of the area and remember the old days when she came here to care for her flowers, she prayed with all her heart that they would still be alive despite not receiving their due attention from her. The white root felt a new bout of sadness when she laid eyes on the corpse of her warrior Dryya, her dear friend. She shed more tears for her, even though her friend had been reassuring her before, the pain of losing those dear to her was a constant in her life, but as her dear friend requested, she shouldn’t cry for those who had parted, but instead for the ones that were alone in their lives. Even though she was weakened, the white root gathered the strength to put the body of the fiercest knight of the Great Five Knights lying down deep into the soil for her final rest. Yet, there remained more bodies in the former battle ground, the mantises that had claimed her life, so the queen did what she had to do. She gave as well a proper burial to the bodies of the traitorous mantises, even knowing that they had come to kill her. But the White Lady couldn’t bring herself to feel anger or indifference towards them, simply because they had been infected, and those who weren’t affected had been following orders and disobeying them would make them face that crime with a swift death sentence. It wasn’t that much different from how the Pale Wyrm did with his soldiers and subjects. Those insects that rebelled against the king or had an opinion different from his, the result would be a life being uprooted. And many lives followed this fate. One of the most renowned rebels was the great warrior known as Xero. It was no wonder that Resting Grounds had so many graves. And it had always boiled down to the same excuse, "Everything I do is for a perfect and eternal kingdom" or "No cost too great", those words would end resonating in her mind, leaving her frustrated. After putting a stop to her insights, the Queen of Hallownest realized that she had finished her service, all the bodies had been given a proper burial under the earth. The White Lady wasn’t bothered by following different traditions, but she herself had her own traditions as to how she should see and treat death.

 **White Lady:** Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

The White Lady muttered a silent prayer for both Dryya and the traitor mantises so they could find a better life after death. Then she placed a Delicate flower she had held on her straps, so as not to touch it and threw it next to the bodies. The flower reacted with magic and multiplied, surrounding all the bodies. It was simultaneously a beautiful yet sad view. With that, the white root finally felt relieved of the mistakes from the past, now finally able to look to the future. Then she walked towards the corridor connecting to her haven. But, as soon as she approached it, she heard voices coming from the other side.

 **??? 1:** Our lord is dead. What will we do? We aren’t welcomed to return to the tribe in the Fungal Wastes.

 **??? 2:** I knew following him would bring us ruin and dishonour. He told us that the infection would make us strong, but look at him, he embraced it without hesitation and now he’s dead, beaten in combat no less!

 **??? 3:** Someone has now to be our new lord. If we can’t go back to the village, then we’ll take it by force. We may have lost the blessing of the infection, but we have more warriors. We can overpower them easily.

When the White Lady reached the end of the corridor, she saw the traitor mantises, or at least the older ones that remained, discussing their options. She noticed they weren’t bloated with infection anymore, back to the shape a mantis was meant to have. With a wave of relief washing over her, she saw the Traitor Lord of the Mantis on the ground with one of his horns broken and his face cracked, besides him there was a young cicada with a gruesome stab wound on her belly. It was clear that both had fought to the death with each other. The Queen of Hallownest remembered one of the stories his son had told her, in which he had befriended a cicada called Cloth, the one here resembled the one she had heard of, so this had to be her. The White Lady was sad to see that her son’s friend had died at such a young age, warriors like her deserved a better future. Accidentally, the white root gave away her hiding position, and attracted the attention of the traitorous mantises. With dread coursing through her, she stumbled and fell on the ground, she wasn’t used yet to her new body.

 **??? 1:** Hey!!! Isn't that the Queen of Hallownest?

 **??? 2:** Yes, it’s the queen herself! It seems that white warrior was truly guarding her after all.

 **??? 3:** What will we do with her, brothers?

 **??? 4:** This shall be for you, Golden Horn. Now that our Lord Grey Claw is dead, you are the strongest among all of us, also your clan has always been the second strongest. I don’t see anyone else to be more fitting to be our new lord.

Among the insects that rejected the Pale King’s rule, the tribe of the mantis had always been one of the most isolated, so much that even the Queen had barely a grasp on their customs. The tribe was made up of familiar clans, and all of them obeyed the strongest one. At her time, it had been the Grey clan, revered for both strength and wisdom, they had no real disapproval from the rest of clans, so any chance for causing a civil war among them was simply too unlikely. At that time. The Queen then gained a deeper understanding of them when one of the Five Great Knights of Hallownest, the mysterious Ze’mer, fell in love with the daughter of the youngest of the four Lords. However, the tribe and the girl’s father didn’t approve of the union of a mantis with an outsider, one who wasn’t even from Hallownest itself. But in the end, Ze’mer and her lover ignored them and their rules, accepting the feelings that they held in their heart. The two even had a secret ceremony to make their vows, promising to be together. That’s when the queen learned that when a mantis marries another, regardless whether it was the male or the female, one adopted the surname of the stronger clan. Ze'mer felt it was only natural as a proof of love to be joined under the full name her bride chose for her, she would be known as Grey Mourner. Grey for the clan, and Mourner for the countless enemies she had slayed in battle. Only a handful got to assist at their union, the other Five Great Knights and the White Lady herself.

Over time, the White Lady learned more of their traditions, although in her opinion, it showed a more barbaric side to them. One of such, was that on a certain day, all the clans in the tribe could challenge the Mantis Lords, for as many times as they wished, until the day was over. Were any of the Lords lose, they wouldn’t just relegate their title to the champion, their whole clan would be demoted as inferior as well. However, should any of the Lords die over an accident that didn’t involve a fight, then automatically the second strongest clan could take the mantle of Lords. The mantises placed honour above all, so cheating to escalate ranks would make them pariahs to the tribe, to the point that they would rather die than tarnishing their honour. Even though the Queen felt repulsed at their brutal hierarchy, she had to admit that the tribe thrived well under it.

The White Lady couldn’t remember any more relevant trivia about the mantis tribe, nothing came to mind that would help her in this situation. She became acutely aware of the scrutiny Golden Horn was directing at her. As dignified as possible in her state, she adjusted her improvised dress, all too conscious of how revealing it looked on her. It didn’t take a genius to understand what that insect wanted from her.

 **Golden Horn:** As you saw, brothers, our former Lord killed that pesky white warrior a while ago, and now after so much time hiding in that cocoon, the Queen of Hallownest cannot even stand. Under normal circumstances, we could just slay her, who else could claim to take the life of a Higher Being? But, we haven’t mated with females in ages and it’s not every day that we have a queen at our feet. She is the Pale Mother, imagine the children we could have with her!

 **???:** Wait a minute my lord, you don't intend to rape the queen, do you!? I will follow you to the end of the world, my lord, but that is not right at all, you will only be tarnishing your honour.

 **Golden Horn:** Shut up Silver Spear! If you aren’t in the mood to mate with the queen, then stay away. We’ve been without a female for who knows how long! And given the stories we’ve heard about the queen, I’m sure she will end up liking it, hah!

The Queen of Hallownest knew that the mantis were naturally strong willed, to the point of being able to resist the infection effortlessly, so even those who embraced it didn’t let Radiance to have full control of them. But she couldn’t imagine this reaction coming from them, despite regaining a full grasp on their actions after losing the infection. Had she been in her former shape, she could easily subdue them, but with her new body, she was hardly able to control her powers, at most she could topple one or two, but they were too many to handle. And begrudgingly, she recognized that her libido had been suppressed for so long, that the idea of mating with so many mantises, sounded almost appealing, despite knowing that even if she had all the insects of Hallownest in her bed they couldn’t satisfy her, but the White Lady resisted those thoughts.

She looked at the mantis called Silver Spear, who was clearly crestfallen at the whole situation. When their gazes met, his eyes were telling her that he was sorry about what was going to happen, and she returned a gesture trying to convey that it was okay, even if deep down she wasn’t doing well at all.

 **???:** DON’T YOU DARE LAY A FINGER ON THE WHITE LADY!!!!

Everyone jumped from the anger filled shout that came from behind the traitor mantis, taken aback by the imposing tone. When they turned back, they were shocked to see the late Lord of Mantis. Grey Claw stood before them, looking like his former self, before the infection mutated his body with an aura emanating from him. The White Lady was the only one that caught on what was that energy, it was essence.

 **???:** Lord Grey Claw, is that you? How could you be…?

 **Grey Claw:** Alive? My corpse is still fresh, so I’m painfully aware that I’ve just passed away. However, I'm not ready to leave this world yet, I have unfinished things that I have to fulfil even after death.

Having said such words, all the traitor mantises, even Golden Horn, bowed to Grey Claw while he approached the White Lady. “What a strange situation” she mused, “normal insects can’t see ghosts of essence unless they possess a dreamnail”, she was able to see him because she was a Higher Being, so there had to be a reason for this. Either when she unleashed her power and broke her bindings, the lingering traces were enabling them to perceive essence, or her hold on her own powers was so feeble that it was flowing freely, affecting the other insects. Whichever it was, in the end it didn’t matter.

Grey Claw finally reached her, and surprised everyone when he made a deep bow before her. The other mantis were in shock, as tradition dictated, the only reason a mantis bended for another insect was because they recognized the other as stronger. Which made no sense for them, this helpless woman couldn’t be superior to their Lord.

 **Grey Claw:** Queen of Hallownest, I beg your forgiveness for the insolence my people have just shown, and for all these years we have laid siege at your refuge.

The White Lady was impressed by the fact that the proud and mighty Lord Grey Claw was making such a display of the highest respect a mantis could offer to her, and she was even more shocked to hear how he was humbling himself to ask for forgiveness on all the previous transgressions his people and he had done.

 **White Lady:** I don’t understand, why are you inclining yourself? Even though you have betrayed your tribe, you still uphold their values. A mantis wouldn’t do such a reverence to anyone who hasn’t earned the respect of a lord. I certainly haven’t fought you to earn such honour.

 **Grey Claw:** Yes, I know majesty. But there is something I must confess, my reason why your person deserves this high homage. However, before that, I would like you to answer a question of mine. I see that my warriors’ eyes have lost that orange tone, has the infection been put to an end?

 **White Lady:** Er... Yes? I mean yes, I was recently aware of this. I’ve learned that the infection is gone, and its origin has been placated.

 **Grey Claw:** This is good. I can accept the relief of knowing that my warriors won’t have to yield to any external force. Now that it is over, I can honour the word I gave to the ferocious Dryya.

Of all the Mantis Lords, the Queen of Hallownest always had the assumption that Grey Claw was the most impulsive and arrogant, but the way he was acting, as a mature and sensible leader, showed her what he was like before the infection exacerbated his flaws. It almost felt like she was talking to a different person.

 **White Lady:** What do you mean by that? How is it that Dryya gave you a mission?

 **Grey Claw:** It is true that when I embraced the infection my family turned their back to me, but rather than turning my rage against my sisters and overtaking the village, I decided to show them my strength by taking a portion of the land the pale beings cherished, I wanted to show them we could claim more land than a piece of the Fungal Wastes. Then I came here and I fulfilled my plan, the Gardens were mine, but as you might guess my story doesn’t end here. I discovered that you were here instead of that ivory castle you call the White Palace when the infection started to spread, a curious choice for a refuge, if you ask me. With that I decided to have you as my wife or just as the progenitor of my children if you refused my offer to wed. Every day I sent mantises to kidnap you, but none came back because of the fierce Dryya. Not a single day passed without her making a stand against my people, she was an impenetrable wall that stopped my progress. I started to think of ways to overcome that wall, but I always failed. Until one day I finally managed to do it on my own. Because of the constant onslaught she finally grew tired, the hunger, and the countless amount of injuries she had, finally made a dent on her. In the end, she fell at my hands. I felt victorious, thinking that my biggest obstacle had been conquered.

 **Grey Claw:** As I got closer to your chamber, I managed to get a glimpse of you. You hadn’t put any restrain to your power still, and it flooded in waves. It was such a pure and kind energy you emanated, like never I had seen before. You showed me a power I could never achieve. I was impressed to see someone lacking the desire to fight or kill, so unlike anyone I had laid my eyes on. I couldn’t put a step forward. I couldn’t raise my claws against such a being. Your desire to protect and love others… It pierced my heart, shattered my bloodlust. I was so overwhelmed that I knelt down, seeing how foolish it was my wish to tarnish those beautiful roots. I had lost the battle even before I could even raise my claws.

 **Grey Claw:** With the last of her strengths, the fierce Dryya looked at me in the eyes. She was dying, but managed to notice what I had witnessed. She didn’t need to ask to make sure about what was going on in my mind, she knew. And with her last breath, she uttered a single word: "Protect". I swore on my honour to fulfil that request.

The White Lady was impressed by what she just heard. She felt somewhat disgusted by how Grey Claw coveted her for her fertility, but her expression softened when he confessed his change of heart, how in the end he respected Dryya’s last wish.

 **Grey Claw:** And since that day, I had never let any being, including my own people, get close to you. The shame for my former actions started to weigh heavily on me. All I could do was to thank that the Light that infected my mind wasn’t asking for reaping your life. I was a fool, such a fool…The only reason I regret not having a life is because I cannot pay for my mistakes using it. Again, I beg for your forgiveness for my misdeeds, and those of my warriors.

The White Lady was rendered speechless. Before his intervention, she had mentally prepared herself to block out the violation that the traitor mantises intended to inflict on her. Nothing could have prepared her for the words of the Traitor Lord himself, protecting her from his own warriors and his apology. She had considered him the most arrogant and brute of the four Lords, and now he was bowing with his head touching the ground and acting like a mature and responsible leader. For a few minutes, the silence hung heavily, because even the mantises couldn’t believe what they were seeing and hearing. Then, the white root recovered from the stupor, and spoke with a soft gentle voice.

 **White Lady:** I forgive you for the mistakes you made, as well as those vile plans you intended to accomplish. Just as I forgive your people for the terrible actions they wanted to do with me.

 **Grey Claw:** I thank you, Queen of Hallownest, the debt I owe will be eternal even if I no longer have a life to fulfil it.

 **White Lady:** Please don’t be hard on yourself. You are forgiven. This pernicious plague had brought the worst in all of us. The kingdom of Hallownest also had these moments and I accepted them in silence. However I do not intend to let the mistakes of my past define who I am.

 **Grey Claw:** Wise words, majesty. But now that I am no longer alive, I must at least guarantee your protection.... Mantis!!!!!

With the authoritative voice of Grey Claw, all of the traitor mantises who were still bowing rose up in unison.

 **Grey Claw:** I am disappointed with the dishonour you were about to perpetrate, you nearly fell to the level of beasts in heat. Be thankful the queen has been magnanimous to forgive us, otherwise I would have taken you all with me to the other world. For your mistakes, you have tarnished the pride of being a mantis, and there’s only one way to make amends.

Everyone was shaking with fear, Grey Claw could be dead, but that would certainly not prevent him from killing them for incurring in his ire. Grey Claw faced Silver Spear, who froze under his gaze.

 **Grey Claw:** Silver Spear, you have acted like a true mantis from the start. You followed me when I was casted out of the tribe and you weren’t scared of being branded as a traitor. You continued upholding your honour code when I and the others were failing at it. And you, much like my daughter, didn’t fall to the infection. You have my respects, and now for such exemplary conduct, you deserve a promotion to second in command in our ranks.

 **Silver Spear:** It is a great honour to receive your respects, my Lord. If I may ask, you just said second in command, then who would be our chief to command your army?

For answering Silver Spear's question, Grey Claw nodded his head towards the White Lady, which provoked a murmur of gasps barely contained.

 **White Lady:** Me?

Grey Claw gave her a gentle smile and nodded. The White Lady mused wistfully that if the circumstances had been different, had she met him as he was presenting now, perhaps she could have got along with him, perhaps as a dear friend she could invite into her home, maybe as someone she could have a crush on, perhaps even as a dalliance if her Wyrm didn't satisfy her enough.

 **Grey Claw:** This is my last order as a Mantis Lord. Starting today you will obey the orders of the White Lady as your new lord. You will as well address her as "Grey Crown", and anyone who turns against her wishes will be killed for dishonour. This will remain so until another Mantis Lord decides to overturn or modify this order. Does anyone have any objections!?

No one of the mantis argued any disagreement, for they knew that before them was a Lord who could wipe them out in an instant. However they remained silent not out of fear but out of loyalty.

 **Grey Claw:** That's what I thought. Now then, I know it's too much to ask, my honourable Lady, but I request you for one more thing, take this girl's body... No, take this warrior's body to the tribe of the mantis and tell my sisters to bury her within the tribe’s resting grounds, as she died as a great warrior, she deserves such a reward. Ask them as well to reconsider the banishment of my warriors. They just followed my orders and they don’t deserve the consequences I put them through for leading them astray. My sisters are stubborn, but with the right words, I know you will manage to fulfil my last wishes, could you please do that?

The White Lady was truly moved once again. She couldn't imagine what had changed the Mantis Lord so much. She didn't think it had been just because he felt her energy that had made such a profound change of heart, although she couldn’t discern the reason why. It was such a shame that Grey Claw had passed away, he finally had gained the qualities to be a good Lord after death. Just when she also obtained a fairer grasp on his character...

The Queen of Hallownest was aware of the difficult mission in front of her. The Lords of the Mantis could be quite stubborn, ever since the early days of Hallownest, their contact had been rough, the diplomatic tension had been ever present. Finally they had settled on never getting involved with anything relating to the Pale King. However, the White Lady was determined to help Grey Claw since he had helped her a lot. Hopefully, his sisters would be reasonable, since it wasn’t an issue with Hallownest, but with their own people.

 **White Lady:** Despite my many limitations, I shall do my best to fulfil your requests, Lord of the Mantis.

 **Grey Claw:** Your generosity and kindness have no limits, majesty. Thank you for accepting this dead Lord's petition.

The white root smiled at the former Mantis Lord. He could now be at peace knowing that his request would be fulfilled, perhaps not now, but soon.

 **White Lady:** And now?

 **Grey Claw:** Now? Right now it's the end of the line, at least for me. The only thing I hope for the other world is to meet my daughter again, perhaps she could give me a second chance to be the father she needed. But before I go, could you please emanate your energy once more for me?

The White Lady nodded a silent yes to Grey Claw. She didn’t have yet full control on her powers, but she wouldn’t disappoint him. It was something she could do even inadvertently, to the point that she had to do a conscious effort to diminish her emanation. Soon enough, she surrounded her body in a white energy. All the insects present were amazed and soothed by the warm and gentle aura. Grey Claw closed his eyes with a smile, enjoying the kind glow.

 **Grey Claw:** Just like the last time.... It's beautiful.

Then, everyone saw the former Mantis Lord had begun to disappear gradually and when the last glow of the essence disappeared, the energy the White Lady was giving faded as well. She admitted to herself that after not doing this for so many years, she was out of breath. Nobody moved or said a word, the mantis were still moved by the words of Grey Claw, and just as mesmerized by the energy of the white root.

However, there was one whose heart remained as a stone. Golden Horn pushed aside the other mantis to get to the Queen of Hallownest once again, the glint in his eyes was the same as before, his carnal hunger remained the same. The white root took notice of him, and almost let out a growl of anguish, she was just so exhausted. But she would show no weakness in front of that vile insect, she wouldn’t surrender to her lewd urges. Almost out of thin air, another mantis jumped to stand in the way, blocking Golden Horn from touching the Queen. Firmly set with the queen at his back, Silver Spear raised his sharp-edged claws towards the lecherous traitor.

 **Silver Spear:** I can't believe this! You are still set on that after hearing the last words of our former lord!? If you insist on your perverse plans, then I will cut you down to protect Lord Grey Crown.

 **Golden Horn:** Hahaha, what a pathetic fool you are. Did you really think we would comply with the demands of a dead Lord? Come try to stop us-...

Golden Horn’s words died in his throat when he noticed that other mantises were taking positions near Silver Spear, and pointed their claws at him, acting as a protective wall to defend her.

 **Golden Horn:** Are you idiots? Grey Claw is dead! He isn’t your Lord anymore! How can you accept his orders? I am the Mantis Lord now!!!!

 **Silver Spear:** It is truly unfortunate that a mantis belonging to one of the strongest clans doesn’t know the most important foundation of the tribe of the mantises. “Honour your Lord's will until your last breath, for every duel and hardship overcame on his behalf, his glory will be yours”. If you don’t honour the wishes of your predecessor, you can never be a Mantis Lord. We were going to appoint you as leader because we had no other sensible choices. However, Lord Grey Crown is our newest leader, chosen by Lord Grey Claw himself. May the Lord's will be absolute!

 **Mantis 1:** May the Lord's will be absolute!

 **Mantis 2:** May the Lord's will be absolute!

All the mantises swore their allegiance, recognizing the White Lady as their new leader. Finally came the turn to Golden Horn, everyone’s eyes were set on him expecting his response, whether he stubbornly resisted or yielded. The pressure was asphyxiating, even if he would never admit it, in the end he conceded defeat, he had to accept the white root as his new Lord. He clenched his jaw and made a bow.

 **Golden Horn:** May the Lord's will be... Absolute!

 **Silver Spear:** You and you, please assist our Lord to walk. Let us show that we have some manners.

After being promoted to second in command by the former Lord, Silver Spear’s order was swiftly fulfilled. Two mantises went to the White Lady and helped her to her feet. She was surprised to see that they really wanted to help her instead of being bitter for obeying orders and mulling over their sexual frustration.

The white root began to think that the hierarchy system of the tribe of mantises had its perks over what the Pale King had created, because with the expanded minds came as well inequity, not everyone had the same level of intelligence, as soon enough, castes were formed spontaneously. The lower caste were the workers and the poorest, and the upper caste, made of the noble and greedy who only cared about money and eating food until they exploded. There was another high caste who Magnus was part of, more known for the title he had claimed for himself, the “Soul Master”. With a wealth only comparable to the one of Lurien the Watcher, he could almost buy the kingdom for himself, which wasn’t too far removed from the vision he had for himself as a king. However, the Pale Wyrm’s power wasn’t something money could buy, so it launched him on an investigation on the power of soul, inflicting the genocide of the people of the capital. Surely he would be proclaimed king after becoming the kingdom’s saviour from the infection. However, he was sealed in his own quarters, in the Soul Sanctum, overpowered by the Pale King himself.

The White Lady, after being lifted, realized that the mantises were awaiting for her orders. Her years from being the queen in the past came handy to keep her composure, dealing with such a crowd would make most insects very anxious.

 **Silver Spear:** Lord Grey Crown, we are at your disposal, just say the word and we will dutifully follow it.

 **White Lady:** At this moment I am going to find my spawn. I found out that the Hollow Knight is still alive and has left the Black Egg. And my son Ghost is in the Royal Waterways as far as I can feel. I don't want you to follow me out of obligation, since my wishes do not involve fighting or killing.

 **Silver Spear:** My lord, do you truly believe that we are barbaric creatures to the point of living just for the kill? Of course not, we also have families and we understand your desire to want to be reunited with your children. As our lord is our duty to follow you, since Lord Grey Claw wanted us to guarantee your protection.

 **White Lady:** If so, then escort me, and protect me while I recover my strength. Once I get back to my feet, I’ll be able to return the kindness you have shown to me tenfold.

The mantis always served their lords without defying their orders under any circumstances, valuing respect and loyalty. But once they saw her kind nature and gentle aura, they couldn’t help feeling their bodies being warmed by the comfort she emanated, almost to the point of being sleepy with how welcoming the White Lady's energy was, even Golden Horn had to admit it.

To maintain the tribe with strong individuals, the mantises were raised in a harsh environment. The mantis weren’t shown love since birth, and the only likeness to it was when they gained a partner. Yet the feeling of love that they were experiencing, one not born of romance or interest, but pure and selfless, was foreign for them, it was motherly love. The young mantises were always well taken care of, but their mothers never gave away affection freely, it had to be earned. Drawn by the queen’s aura, the young mantises flew next to her, skittishly nearing her and falling back. She smiled at them and made little chatter, complimenting them on the difficult manoeuvres they did with their wings. One of them misjudged the distance and impacted with one of the giant statues of the garden, the child tried not to shear a tear, choking down on a sob, as the others would mock acts of weakness like that. The queen came over and after checking it was just a small bump, she hugged the young mantis, who was shocked at the interaction, feeling the overwhelming need to hug her back. The child went back to his group, whispering how nice the lady was. In a way, the younger mantises began to see her as the mother they never had.

As soon as White Lady walked among the mantises and took the lead, Silver Spear stood on her right side while the rest of the mantises followed her right after. They warned the children about everything and made them follow the Queen of Hallownest. One of the mantis retrieved Cloth's corpse, at the request of the late Lord Grey Claw, and took the warrior's body with them. However, before leaving the Gardens, the White Lady asked some of the mantis to bury the body of Grey Claw next to his daughter's. It was only fitting, as both were father and daughter, clans were buried together in the cemetery.

So, the White Lady led most of the mantis, while still getting tired from walking, her body would take some time before she could regain some autonomy. When her legs gave up on her, Silver Spear and another mantis would help her to walk or even offer themselves for carrying, of course the last option was always denied because the white root didn't want to abuse their kindness. As soon as they passed through, the absurdly abundant amount of thorns, the White Lady and her newest army of warriors arrived at their huts.

 **White Lady:** Pick up your belongings, we will leave as soon as you are done.

Not wasting any time, the mantises packed their things while Silver Spear was on guard next to the White Lady who was seated. Suddenly, a tremor resonated in the Gardens, not unlike a Stags stampede, it wasn’t nearly as strong as the one that shook the entire Hallownest, but it left everyone on guard. The Queen of Hallownest heard a cavernous voice from someone arguing with another insect and also a laughter that rang all too familiar to her.

 **??? 1:** THAT’S NOT FAIR!!!

In a moment, the tremor stopped, until another came even stronger, and then on the other side of the mantis camp, a huge creature landed. No mantis had seen any creature like that before and he was admittedly quite scary looking despite being able to see just his back to them. He had an extremely thin body and his head was covered with a bush. There was another sound coming from a second insect next to him.

 **??? 2:** No matter how much you complain, I have won fair and square.

 **??? 1:** Cheater, didn't you tell me you could teleport, not to mention why you didn't use it before?

 **??? 3:** Cheater... Trickster...

 **??? 2:** I never said I wasn't able to teleport and you didn't ask. Also, you forgot to mention that the only means to reach the end of the race was by using only the limbs, so clearly, I didn't break any rules, hahaha. I simply didn't make use of it the first time because I wanted to be fair with you, because otherwise you wouldn't have the chance to even touch me, hahahaha!

 **??? 1:** Haha! You are full of tricks, what a deceptive insect.

 **??? 2:** Isn't that what you do with your camouflage? Don't you fool your preys pretending to be a bush?

As soon as they were done talking, the giant insect turned around and looked at the surprised mantises. His face was darkened by the bush on his head and only the glint of six eyes could be seen, grasps that looked like teeth were flanking the camouflage and holding it in place. The huge insect looked at the mantises with a somewhat disgruntled face from his interaction with the second insect. Appearing behind him, a third bug made an appearance, this one was small with a white face and two short horns on each side of the head facing upwards, the small bug was donning a dark green cloak and a little nail strapped to the back.

The White Lady rushed desperately, this was one of her children! She never imagined there would be more survivors, her heart was fluttering with happiness. The Queen of Hallownest ran towards the child, disregarding any danger that would pose the newcomers. And then, she distinguished the insect that had been speaking before with the big one. The black chitin and red eyes were exactly like her granddaughter’s, but while she adored her, this one had earned her immediate scorn, making her wish she would never cross paths with him again. For her, he was the worst of the worst, and she chastised herself for not recognizing his voice sooner. The scarlet eyed insect finally took notice of her, and with a smug smirk on his lips he bowed at her.

 **??? 2:** It's been a long time since we last saw each other dear root. You are still more beautiful than the sunrise and more charming than the full moon.

 **White Lady:** You...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you like it?
> 
> The names I put on the mantises was an idea that came to my mind, as the praying mantis is an insect very well regarded by the Chinese, I started to see more the tribe of mantises as a samurai village where each family is part of a clan.
> 
> The next chapter will come as soon as possible, so I ask you to be a bit more patient.
> 
> This was something I found recently and decided to put it on the fanfic: https://www.deviantart.com/karen360/art/Hollow-Knight-White-Lady-and-TL-ship-request-845391447


	6. Hunting brothers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Predators are seen as powerful creatures in the eyes of their preys, however, what would happen if two predators that were absolutely different from each other interacted? Will they fight until one of them has taken the life of the other predator in its clutches or will something unexpected arise from that encounter?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is not the good old man, but I bring you a gift.
> 
> I hope you like the new chapter and if the next one takes too long, I wish you a Merry Christmas in advance.

The vegetation from Greenpath was refreshing for the stroll Grimm was having, he had grown bored with the cloudy sky of Dirtmouth and decided to walk to places where he could set the stage. He wanted to be the first in line to see such a show or maybe even be one of the artists performing. It had been years ago since his last visit to Hallownest and he never had the chance to see the other regions of the kingdom. In fact, during that one he had been a Grimmchild who had just grown his legs and started to rely less on his wings.

He knew it was too reckless to leave his troupe, with no one to watch out on him, but even though he was no longer the bearer of the Nightmare Heart, the scarlet insect still had its influence. The power to impose fear was always a neat gimmick he liked to inflict, especially on his servants, and he could use their shared connection to the Higher Being to track them. Besides, he didn’t have to worry about any pesky infection or deal with a haughty king promoting the grandeur of his eternal kingdom. Any foreigner insect would be welcome because that meant more faithful worshipers to engross his ranks, but anyone like Grimm, who was already devoted since the day he was born to another deity? He was regarded as scum. Now that those problems had disappeared, Grimm had no reason to worry about wandering Hallownest.

And yet, what he was yearning for was not relaxation. Truly, he was really wishing someone would step on the line, preferably Brumm, so he could have an excuse for punishing his new transgression, and actually dish out the retribution he had planned for him before. The lush vegetation of Greenpath had a soothing effect on him, pushing aside his vindictive thoughts. He had never seen such a green scenery in his life, and for a first time experience, he was loving the place. He even found interesting how deadly it was even after getting rid of the infection, Fool Eaters and Gulkas were growing in hidden places, and acid still flowed throughout Greenpath, bubbling as if feeling hostility to outsiders. There was a sad truth on the origins of the acid, with very few knowing of it, Grimm even felt a bit disgusted, for this pool of acidic water was none other than the blood of Unn. Higher Beings with a physical body were as susceptible to bleeding as the common insect, regardless of the myths surrounding them. The goddess of moss and leaves used her blood to put a stop to the infection in Greenpath. The big slug knew that the infection worked as a parasite on the living beings, and even the very green she created was falling a victim of the plague. So Unn used her blood as a medicine, to ensure that the infection didn’t spread throughout her creation, the bubbles created in the acid washed the infection away from the soil. However, the Mosskin tribe wasn’t immune to the acidic blood of their creator and eventually they fell to the infection. There was only one among them that had been blessed to swim in the acid, and she had long ago left the tribe. Despite Unn’s noble sacrifice, she had been bleeding for so long that she was too weak to fully make a recovery after the infection was over.

But, this wasn’t the great troupe master Grimm’s problem. He had never cared about the other Higher Beings, and he wasn’t going to start feeling concerned about them or other insects in general. Although he had to admit that he felt a little bit sorry about Unn, her actions had been like those of a mother doing everything to protect her offspring from a terrible fate. Perhaps in the end, he had gained some empathy after Ghost completed the ritual. When he found out the vessel’s name after both had fought for the first time, he used a paper to write it out for him, expressing excitedly how much he enjoyed the fight and saying that he wanted to be friends with him. Despite the shaky handwriting, the words were clear and readable for Grimm. After seeing the determination of that vessel and his elegant and splendid finale for the ritual, coloured impressed Grimm. His admiration only increased with the infinite kindness the knight showed, and Ghost’s fatherly behaviour towards his daughter. Maybe that had been what had touched the scarlet insect’s fiery heart, seeing the vessel treat the successor of the Nightmare Heart like his own daughter.

The walk continued, and Grimm spotted some mosskin, who were still feeling dazed. The moss knights however managed to stand still, however none of them raised their nails against him, perhaps because the troupe master hadn't disturbed the peace. In the past all insects were welcomed in Greenpath, and now after the infection they still kept that courtesy, a rare thing in the difficult times they were living. Grimm also learned from his servants that Greenpath was famous for having simple-minded beasts that were as well very tame, to the point of being easily domesticated. In the golden age of Hallownest, Greenpath was a great tourist spot for families and a fine place to find a pet to bring home. Grimm admitted that the mosscreeps were so adorable that they reminded him of the noises his daughter made when she was just a newborn. But he wasn’t looking for a pet, and the trip was merely because he needed to go to find her. He could feel the energy of the insects, although hers was remarkably different from the common bug, and she was very close to Greenpath. Grimm couldn’t wait to see her again.

**Grimm** : Will she still remember me? If she does, she must be so full of spite just by recalling my name. After all, we kind of “played” with the citizens that day…

Grimm was absorbed in his thoughts, lingering in the past, yet his steps were graceful, used to walk while daydreaming since he took his father’s place as the Master of the Grimm Troupe. But now he had broken a taboo, he wasn’t anymore the vessel of the Nightmare’s Heart and didn’t die for it, so he didn’t need to abide the rules that were imposed on him previously and his ancestors. Soon, his daydreaming took him to a corridor with teeth-like stones. The scarlet insect was a bit surprised, this place didn’t look exactly like a hot spot for Hallownest tourists, it seemed like some predator’s lair. Not that it scared him, Grimm himself was a predator as well, and his upbringing would ensure that he could send any challenger running away fearing for their life. Even if he no longer had the protection of the Nightmare’s Heart, he kept his strength and a few tricks under his cloak.

As soon as he left the corridor, he saw an enclosed area with what appeared to be a small cave covered in grass, and more teeth shaped stones around it. The troupe master was in no hurry, so he slowly approached the small cave, and when he was about to take a peek at the inside, six glowing eyes pierced the darkness, followed by a deafening roar. Grimm, startled, moved away to attack, but unfortunately for him, the ground he was standing on gave way under his feet.

The fall didn’t faze Grimm, as he landed elegantly on the floor, however he had no time to analyse the situation. He had felt the danger falling down from above and when he looked up, he saw a creature as big as it was lean, with its claws raised ready to attack him. The scarlet insect also saw that the big insect was wearing some kind of hood made of grass covering its head. Grimm chastised himself for falling into such an obvious trap as that one, but his reflexes kicked in and he scurried away like a spider, dodging the attack of the creature. As soon as it landed, the earth trembled under its weight and then he roared at Grimm once more. Grimm wasn’t intimidated at all, and he screeched back at it, revealing a mouth almost too big for his head, both combatants were out for the blood of the other, dazed in their bloodlust.

**???** : It’s been a while since I encountered such a nimble creature, with a wit just as quick and aware. You have dodged one of my attacks, impressive! I, Hunter, will relish on tearing you to pieces!

**Grimm** : You are quite the dancer. So straightforward. But I like your type as well. However, don’t delude yourself, you are the prey in this dance. I have forgotten how meat tastes, and I can’t recall the last time I ate something that wasn’t the flame in dream.

After giving each other compliments dripping in threats, Grimm bowed, as he always treated battles as a performance. And the creature called Hunter used that distraction lunging to the scarlet insect, trying to cleave him with his claws. But the master of the troupe was just too fast, and with a flourish, he stepped aside making a feint, and using that momentum, he struck back. Grimm’s attack was blocked, the Hunter used his hand to grab Grimm and knocked him to the ground with such force that a small crater formed on the floor. Grimm groaned from the pain of the impact. Hunter was going to attack again, but he held back when he noticed the grin on his opponent’s face. With a twirl of his cape, Grimm’s cloak sunk into the floor and resurfaced as spikes that perforated the body of the large insect, making him scream in pain. With brute force, he tore the thorns, but while he was busy freeing himself, Grimm had already prepared his next assault. Grimm lifted his cloak and from within, red fire creatures launched towards the Hunter who, unfazed by the exotic maneuver, countered them with his own tricks, hitting the flying flames from a distance and destroying them.

He was so concentrated on eliminating them, that he didn’t notice how Grimm had sneaked on him. Halfway through, Grimm jumped, and fusing his cape to his body, he turned it into a drill that hit Hunter, and once he landed he hit again, using his arm fused with his cape as a drill. But Hunter was quick, and held Grimm’s arm, attempting to land a blow of his own on him. Grimm however, used his free hand to claw at Hunter’s face, trying to liberate himself from his grip. Hunter released him, and the troupe master tried to attack his face again, but his adversary managed to get a hold on him, digging his claws into Grimm’s body and smacking him into the ground. Hunter ruthlessly struck again and again his opponent, and Grimm stiffened his cape to withstand most of the damage, but the Hunter was absurdly strong, and he feared that his cape wouldn’t hold for much longer. Grimm had to take a risk, and he grabbed Hunter’s hands. Hunter barely registered the warmth that came before Grimm used his fire magic to burn them.

The large insect howled in pain and fell to his knees. However, he refused to give up, and hit Grimm with a headbutt that forced the scarlet insect to stumble back, stunning him. It gave Hunter enough time to punch him and toss him away. Grimm impacted against the wall with a sonorous thud, but recovered from the attack quickly, jumping into the fray once more. The scarlet insect uncovered a new trick, first he climbed to the ceiling, to avoid Hunter’s reach, and his cloak swelled like a balloon with spikes all over the surface. Hunter barely had time to wonder about the defensive tactic, when he saw how it started to shoot descending fireballs. The attack covered near all the area they were in, so Hunter struggled to avoid or deflect them, to the point of receiving numerous blasts from them.

Grimm shot fire until he couldn’t any more. However, the effort left Grimm breathless, and landed with his legs trembling. He didn’t expect to spend so much energy against that rival, and from the glance he could take, the insect called Hunter was tired as well, but both of them were too stubborn to accept defeat. So once more, they clashed, claws sweeping like nails, at a nearly impossible fast pace. Gusts of wind were created from their brawl, debris would scatter all over as if a tornado was tearing apart the ground. Hunter was leaving claw marks on the stone and Grimm’s red fire was burning the vegetation. At some point the heat of the fire was so high, that it would leave incandescent spots, almost like if it was going to turn into lava.

Both combatants were at their limits, and they knew that the smallest mistake would result in death. And yet, this was so much fun! They were pumped up for seeing who would be the winner.

They both prepared for a last desperate blow that would decide everything. Grimm, even though he wasn’t as physically strong as his opponent, used the rest of his magic to reinforce his punch, giving his claws a red fiery glow. Hunter couldn’t hold for much longer, so he put all his soul into a final blow. Finally both punches connected to each other's faces, with such force, that Grimm felt his face being cut by sharp razors and Hunter had the outer part of his leaves hood burnt to a crisp. Grimm and Hunter were bewildered by the hit they received, and when they tried to land another blow, they fell down. Unable to move but still conscious, the two faced each other, and burst out laughing so loudly that the echo carried all over the place.

**Hunter** : Hahaha! You are a strong one! I couldn’t imagine that your little body packed such a powerful predator inside. I’m satisfied. You are a great hunter, without any doubt.

Grimm was pleased by the compliment, although he was sure that had he still harboured the Nightmare’s Heart within him, he could have defeated the giant insect. Granted, it wouldn’t have been easy. Nevertheless, he was happy that he was able to face him with his current power, and even more relieved for not having to draw on his reserves of the essence of the Nightmare’s Heart and to become the Nightmare King Grimm. With that power, he could easily beat Hunter, but the drain would be too much for him. Maybe even resulting in his death.

**Grimm** : I can say the same about you. I didn’t expect you to keep up the rhythm of the dance, but I see you have a rough and frantic pace yourself. You have outperformed my expectations.

**Hunter** : I can’t believe it. Little flame, are you really calling our fight a dance? You are a strange one, you know?

**Grimm** : I'm sorry, mister cave face, but those are just my mannerisms. I hardly ever speak with people that are not part of the troupe, other than outsiders interested in our craft.

**Hunter** : I see. From the looks of it, you don't seem to be an inhabitant of Hallownest. And I've been around this realm in the past, so I can't really judge you, since I'm an outsider as well.

**Grimm** : Believe me, if the King and Queen of Hallownest knew of my arrival, they wouldn’t waste a second in sending their troops to expel my troupe and me.

**Hunter** : You speak like you got to meet the former monarchs.

**Grimm** : It’s not my first time visiting these lands. I was but a child, and Hallownest was living its golden days. The Wyrm’s poor vessel hadn’t been created yet when I came.

**Hunter** : I may be old as well, however, I only got to hear about the kingdom of Hallownest when I was a pretentious young lad, and I caught wind of the rumours about the plague that had brought it into ruin. It’s surprising to find someone that old. But there’s one thing I don’t understand. What the hell is a Wyrm?

Grimm for a moment looked at Hunter wondering if he had been living under a boulder or simply didn’t care. The troupe master settled it was a combination of both, and he was in a good mood, so he would tell his audience about the past of Hallownest and the insects that lived in it. Grimm’s tale went on and on while he was lying down, recovering his strength. The scarlet insect was impressed with how little had transcended from the frontiers of the kingdom, if Hunter’s experience was any indication. The hunter mentioned that his interest was on the potential prey, not so much on some old stories. Grimm with a shifty smile, gave another spin to his storytelling to grab again his attention. 

**Grimm** : My apologies, you are yourself a fellow predator, what I’m doing talking like some historian? Perhaps I should share my own experiences hunting these lands. This kingdom is filled with noteworthy preys, and I’m sure you’ll like to know more about this matter.

Hunter was interested again, listening carefully, now that he knew that Hallownest was a dish more full of meals than he initially gave it credit for, his crave for understanding finally gave way to hearing more details. This kingdom had warriors that could be seen as gods, monarchs that had a potential barely seen by the common bug and beast. This realm hosted so many Higher Beings, something impossible in the barren Wasted Lands. Finally, Hunter heard of the origin of the infection, of Radiance, and how it had recently come to an end. The news greatly delighted the Hunter, he could now devour insects and get their real taste. He had been planning on leaving soon because not only they didn’t pose a challenge for him, their flavour was simply awful. Like something sweet and rotten. The scarlet insect tried to warn him that Radiance could be now in the waking world, but the Hunter only saw this as an opportunity to see how strong was the being that had laid the kingdom to ruin. Grimm insisted that in the rare instance that they met, he couldn’t stand a chance, Hunter just grumbled at that remark.

After finishing what Grimm considered his most masterful class on Hallownest history, it was now the turn to tell his own story. The both of them were sitting, and the troupe master told him a brief explanation about the Higher Being he served, the ritual and his ancestors, and his own origins. The Hunter felt cocky after hearing what kind of opponent he had just faced, after all, how many could claim to be on the same level as the earthly avatar of a Higher Being?

**Hunter** : So then, your Higher Being controls the nightmares and the Old Light controls the dreams, and he came after her. Does that make them siblings or mother and son?

**Grimm** : It’s more complex than that. Radiance could control the nightmares in the past, but she wasn’t interested in them. The Nightmare realm was also weakening her ties to her children. It was by mere chance that the Nightmare’s Heart formed on its own when Radiance started to feel the negative emotions that came from the nightmares, and that’s why she divided both realms for good. The Old Light saw this as an opportunity to give the Heart full control over the nightmares, and remove that responsibility from her, so their relationship can be boiled down to coworkers.

**Hunter** : I see. But there’s still something bothering me after all of this.

**Grimm** : And what would it be, Hunter?

**Hunter** : If the ritual you spoke about is already complete, then what will happen to you, Grimm? Didn’t you say that the flames of the father would feed the child?

Grimm was surprised to see that Hunter actually called him by his name instead of a vague pronoun or moniker and at the same time he noticed he had done the same with him. In the end he had opened up to him, so perhaps this could be the first step to consider him his friend. The troupe master wasn’t bothered with how quickly the bond had formed, but the worried tone the Hunter had when he asked the last question certainly caught him off guard. After their conversation and the fight they had, made them emphasize with each other, like brothers in arms. Hunter’s question was nevertheless something he had been trying to avoid to think about, the answer scared him to the bone, and it was hard to spill to anyone. He didn’t want to look rude by avoiding the question, so he, at the very least, tried.

**Grimm** : Well, I...

**???** : Master...

The master of the troupe was luckily interrupted by a voice that seemed to belong to a child. He noticed that something had landed nearby and had been hiding its presence the whole time. When she came out of the shadows, he was shocked to see a vessel. He almost thought it was his dance partner, but the horns were different from Ghost’s, this vessel had two pairs of short horns on the sides of the face and the cloak was dark green. However, what surprised him the most, was that the vessel was able to speak. The Hunter turned to her and came near.

**Hunter** : Zelena, my little one, I almost forgot you were still hiding.

Grimm was amazed when he saw that the vessel called Zelena, went to Hunter's lap without a worry about her safety or his scary looks, in fact she seemed happy with him.

**Grimm** : Zelena!?

**Hunter** : Well, she was my apprentice in the past. As I said before I lived in Hallownest when it had just turned into ruins and that's when I met this little girl. I trained her as a hunter and gave her a nail. I also called her Zelena because she had no name. I hadn't seen her in years and I just met her again today, I was worried about thinking that something bad had happened to her.

**Zelena** : Master...

Zelena hugged Hunter affectionately and he reciprocated, while Grimm was still astonished by what he was seeing, and this time the big insect noticed his expression.

**Hunter** : What now? Do you think that simply because I enjoy hunting and killing, I can't be affectionate?

**Grimm** : That's not why I'm surprised Hunter, do you remember what I said about the vessels?

**Hunter** : Yes, and what does that have to do with this?

**Grimm** : What you're holding right now is a vessel.

**Hunter** : Don't say nonsense Grimm, you said yourself that vessels don't have the ability to speak or feel. How could Zelena be...? Wait a minute.

Hunter started to think. When he met Zelena, she didn't seem to be afraid of him, and not a sound came out of her mouth. Sometimes he felt annoyed because she never answered his questions or said anything during her training. At first he thought she didn’t trust him, and shortly after he thought that she just wasn’t interested in communicating, so he let her be. By the time they met again, they had ended up sincerely missing each other. During their reunion neither of them had even thought about the fact that she finally had talked to him when she returned to his den. At that moment Hunter was overcome with emotion, but now that he had his mind clear, he studied Zelena and indeed, he had all the characteristics that Grimm had said about the vessels.

**Grimm** : Now do you understand what I meant?

**Hunter** : But that doesn't make sense, how can she talk? This can’t be possible.

**Grimm** : I don't know either, even though Ghost managed to show emotions, he never exposed the ability to communicate verbally. And I can safely say that the end of the infection has nothing to do with it.

**Hunter** : Ghost? Could you be talking about the young hunter? Now it makes sense why he reminded me of Zelena.

**Grimm** : Why I'm not surprised that you have met Ghost. He's been wandering all over Hallownest, it's pretty obvious that the both of you had to find each other.

**Hunter** : This is quite a strange situation. I think it's best to ask Zelena about why she can talk.

**Grimm** : I just don't quite understand why you gave such a feminine name to a vessel.

**Hunter** : At first I only called her like that because I don’t know many names, but after today, I can give her this name, because I was sure of something. The reason why I’m so distraught is not just because she can now speak. I have quite a keen sense of smell and Zelena is giving off female pheromones. Do you get what I’m trying to say?

It took a heartbeat for Grimm to let what Hunter said sink in, and when it did, his mind was blown by the implications. Pheromones were an everyday occurrence for communication, from the royal orders of the queen of bees, to a simple “card” of identification or even displaying aggressive or mating moods. Vessels were special, because they seemed to exude no pheromones regarding their sex. The sudden display of female pheromones could only mean Zelena had gained genitalia, another thing that a vessel should not be able to have. He got over the shock and gave a tired sight, halfway squinting his eyes in exasperation.

**Grimm** : I believe this should be saved for later.

**Hunter** : Agreed.

As soon as Hunter put Zelena back on the ground, he and Grimm faced her as if she had the answer to every oddity she now had, which made the little vessel feel a little bit nervous.

**Hunter** : Zelena, could you tell me why you can speak now?

It took Zelena a while to speak, it seemed as if she was thinking about what she had to say. Grimm already expected that she wouldn’t be able to create a complete sentence, since the vessels never learned to speak, both because of their nature and due to the lack of training.

**Zelena:** After... Dying... Shade... Returns... Abyss... Then... I saw... Void... United... Very... Strong... Shade... Back... To body... I... Came back... To life... Then... I found... Master...

It didn’t take a genius to know what Zelena was saying. Even Hunter was able to understand what she was saying because of the explanation Grimm gave him about the vessels and their Shades. While Grimm’s version had been a summary, the troupe master was aware of the full process. The vessels had a Shade made of Void, it was a part of them and kept them alive. Since they were born of two Higher Beings and the Void, their life expectancy would be much higher compared to common insects, at least in theory. In the eventuality of the Shade leaving the shell, they could still live, but it could hardly be called “living”, it was the life of a living corpse. The functionality of the vessel’s body would be hindered with each passing hour since they departed with their Shade. Movement would become sluggish, requiring more effort to simple actions, until they could move no more. Their capacity to retain Soul would be diminished as well. And yet, their consciousness would remain, their senses still picking up on the world around them. As for the fate of the Shade, as soon as the shell is broken enough, when the body’s capacity to function is gone, the Shade would return to the Abyss, making itself a ball and dropping into the ground. Their life expectancy, their longevity, would work against them because they would not die after losing their Shade, they would be just like a living corpse, unable to move, unable to absorb Soul to ease their pain, destined to see, hear, feel everything around them and their battered body. Destined to witness the passing of time in front of them, without being able to do absolutely nothing. Perhaps, as a small blessing, some vessels with a good connection to their Shade could see through their eyes, even if it was the barren Abyss, at least they had their siblings as company, along with the shells of the unfortunate ones.

Judging from Zelena’s words, she said that after she died, something very powerful came from the Void and gave Zelena her Shade back, making a full recovery. The implications made Grimm remember something that had been on his mind since his unexpected visit to the Godhome, the realm where the godseekers lived. He had faced Ghost in combat, both as himself and as the Nightmare King Grimm. After thinking it over, he started to understand what could have transpired.

**Hunter** : You look pensive, Grimm. Are her words making you think about something you know of?

**Grimm** : I’ve got nothing but mere conjectures. Not even the Pale Wyrm knew what he was doing with the Void when he tried to use it.

**Hunter** : It seems that we are going nowhere with this. Zelena, one more thing, you have said that you died. Do you know what happened? Was it someone?

**Zelena** : Strong… Girl… Red… Cloak… Needle… Silk… Challenged… Tested… Me… Afraid…

**Hunter** : I see.

Both Grimm and Hunter knew who she was talking about. Grimm was aware of the public secret that the Pale King had given a daughter to the late Queen of the Weavers, to be able to have Herrah as one of his Dreamers. Hunter had a more personal knowledge, because he had met the assumed hunter a few times. He had to admit that even though she was inexperienced on their first meeting, she almost beat him. Hunter preferred not to comment on her out loud to avoid upsetting the small vessel, it would be all too unpleasant to speak of the person responsible for her death on the same day she returned to life.

Grimm felt the conversation was over, so he prepared to make his leave.

**Grimm** : I see that you no longer intend to eat me and I lost my appetite for devouring you, so I'm taking my leave.

**Hunter** : And where does the great Grimm, master of the troupe, intend to go? Does he even know where he's going? After all, Greenpath connects with many places from Hallownest, you could even go in the opposite direction from where you wish to go.

Grimm had to bite his tongue, the Hunter had seen right through him and even though the fierce hunter had his face covered, the master of the troupe could discern a teasing smile in the big insect. Hunter was finding Grimm's unfamiliarity of the terrain amusing. The insect scarlet didn't really know where he was going, he knew the name of the places, and even though he had lost his connection to the Nightmare’s Heart, he could still feel the energy of the other insects. Yet, he had never left his tent to explore and develop a sense of direction, everything looked the same to him. Swallowing his pride and trying not to show how embarrassed he felt, he turned to ask the Hunter.

**Grimm** : Help me?

Hunter’s smile grew wider and Grimm could tell despite still being concealed under his hood, as if he was expecting something more to come from Grimm. The troupe master was at the verge of sulking.

**Grimm** : Please?

**Hunter** : Hey there, don't you know how to ask politely? And to think that the Grimm's troupe was such an ill-mannered bunch, hahahaha.

Hunter's laughter echoed throughout the area, accompanied with Zelena’s own share formed from imitating him, which made Grimm even more irritated.

**Grimm** : I'm surprised you hunters got a sliver of a sense of etiquette, and demand others to ask politely. With that horrendous lack of hygiene, it’s no wonder hunters are regarded as brutish barbarians. In this fetid hole you call your lair; you almost knocked me out with that dreadful odour of yours. It’s so bad, your punches are weaker when compared to it. How could a living being smell worse than a corpse is beyond me.

**Hunter** : Mind your words! It was my mother who taught me manners and to bite off the heads of bullies. And look who’s talking about stinking like a corpse, you smell like sulphur! Really, when was the last time you washed? A lifetime ago? I, on the other hand, clean myself with mud. It’s an effective way of dealing with parasites and hiding my smell so that no prey can detect me. Two boons at the same time! If you dare to speak nonsense of my den and I’ll decorate your face with the edge of my claws.

**Grimm** : I clean myself with earthly ashes, you stick insect miniature. It’s the most efficient way. And I rather use the ashes of dead insects than resorting to mud like an uncivilised beast. With that stench clinging to your body it’s no surprise that not a single prey will get close enough to fall for your tricks.

**Hunter** : I see you have finally accepted your dead. You clean yourself with ashes? I take back what I said about you being strange, what you truly are, is the freakiest foulest smelling insect I’ve ever come across.

Hunter and Grimm quickly got on their feet and faced each other, holding their stare. Even though Grimm and Hunter were dishing out verbally, neither felt the same necessity of ripping out the other that rushed through their veins when they actually came to blows. The atmosphere felt all too different, lighter. The troupe master knew that despite the harsh words thrown, neither of them really meant it. It was all bark and no bite. Grimm and Hunter weren’t familiarized with arguing and not starting a fight afterwards, they never had joked like that with a friend. It was the first time Grimm had been so needlessly rude with someone, the freedom that came from being so unhinged, from expressing what he wanted to say, gave him an unfamiliar happiness. Suddenly, Zelena dashed between them, the abrupt movement drew their gazes on her. She stood in the middle and faced Grimm with her eyes closed and comically waving her arms.

**Zelena** : Master... Doesn’t... Stink.

**Hunter** : Hahahaha! Did you see that? Even Zelena knows best.

**Grimm** : Well, of course, you have put mud in her mind as well. It’s the only way she would be able to stand your rotten egg smell.

**Hunter** : Enough! I’m tired of your babbling, I demand a second round.

**Grimm** : Hmm, I have already seen how strong you are. Now I wish to test how fast you can be.

**Hunter** : It’s a deal, my friend.

Grimm couldn’t believe what he had just heard.

**Grimm** : What did you say?

**Hunter** : What? Friend? I thought you wouldn’t mind if I called you so, because you are one of the few insects that have gained my recognition, and I see you as a friend. Now, there are not many I can claim having a friendship with, but if you don’t like it, I’ll understand.

**Grimm** : That’s not the matter. It’s just that I’ve never had friends, at most my servants, and also I never had the privilege to meet other insects that weren’t involved in the ritual. I’ve been called many things, but never a friend, and… I have to admit I am honoured.

**Hunter** : Well, then have the pleasure of having me as your first friend.

Hunter stretched his arm in Grimm’s direction and then closed his hand as if he was going to do a punch. It took a moment for the master of the troupe to understand what the fierce hunter meant with that and, with a smile on his face, Grimm returned the same gesture, making a fist bump.

**Hunter** : Don’t you think that because we are friends I’m going to let you win.

**Grimm** : I would be disappointed if you did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, did you like the chapter?
> 
> Here are some fanarts of what the battle between Grimm and Hunter would be like:  
> https://i.pinimg.com/originals/18/b2/52/18b25282ed10a5fc915a8e9a99e03371.jpg  
> https://i.pinimg.com/736x/af/00/67/af00679920080e0426aed813daa46f41.jpg


	7. Predators’ race

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two predators, having a friendship stronger than steel and more intense than fire, would Greenpath be able to endure the dispute between these two warriors?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HO HO HO !!!! Merry Christmas to everyone
> 
> And the gift that I and my friend Lamia_editions, give to our lovely readers, is a new chapter.

As soon as Grimm and Hunter caught a breath from their injuries, they went outside the cave of the big insect, then started to prepare for their next dispute. This time they settled on a racing competition, to see who was the fastest between them. Since it had been Grimm’s idea and Hunter hadn’t set on a place to put the finish line, Grimm decided he would seize the opportunity and use the race as a way to get to the place he wanted before meeting her, so he proposed to finish the race at the Queen’s Gardens. The fierce hunter drew a map on the ground, showing the exact path where they were supposed to go. He also explained all the obstacles ahead, so he wouldn’t have an unfair advantage over Grimm, and finally the scarlet insect added the rule that neither of them would attack each other during the race. The finish line within the Queen’s Gardens would be the entrance to one of the Stag stations. Now fully ready for the race, Grimm situated himself beside Hunter, and Zelena climbed and held onto the head of her master so that she could accompany them.

 **Hunter** : I didn’t get a chance to ask before, but why do you want to go to the Queen’s Gardens?

Grimm gave a slight smile, amused with Hunter’s curiosity, to the point it could be considered a surname for Hunter. No matter how much the big insect denied it to keep his pride as a hunter, he truly possessed a craving for knowledge that went beyond hunting. The scarlet insect also noticed that Zelena seemed interested, although differentiating her genuine curiosity from mere imitation of her master was difficult to discern.

 **Grimm** : Let’s say I’m looking for something that I could find interesting. Perhaps that place could hold the show I wish to see so much, and I intend to be the first one in line. And who knows? Maybe I could be even a performer as well.

 **Hunter** : That’s not really an answer for my question.

 **Grimm** : Oh, but wouldn’t that make things more entertaining? This way, you will find out on your own my reason for going there.

Hunter just grimaced at Grimm’s comment. The master of the troupe didn't even answer properly even when he was being asked in a precise and direct way, always conveying an air of mystery as if it was something very important, something that would cost somebody’s life if they knew. However, he liked to see that his new friend was fun and had a sense of humour, even if said humour was a little strange. The scarlet insect took a peek behind him, finding the den almost empty, after all, Hunter didn't have a house, his quarters were quite literally a hole in the ground. He was surprised he felt sorry to drag the big insect out of his home. He wouldn’t tell anyone, least of all to the fierce hunter, that he was feeling sorry for him. But he couldn’t help himself and asked him.

 **Grimm** : Are you sure you won’t be troubled for leaving your home? You don’t have to be involved with my own search.

Hunter glanced back at him and smiled softly, or what Grimm considered that might have been a smile, since he couldn't actually see the big insect's mouth.

 **Hunter** : Don’t worry about that. A hunter never has a home. I had been planning on leaving Hallownest some days ago, both because I had already explored this kingdom and because there were no insects that weren’t tainted with the disgusting taste of the infection. But now I have my pupil back, and the insect’s flavour will be back normal, so I can finally savour their real taste. I’m interested in the traitor mantises, now that the infection is over I wonder if they will taste like the other mantis? Perhaps, they’ll taste different.

Hunter couldn’t see, but Grimm noticed that Zelena had been thrilled when he mentioned her. The scarlet insect had to wonder to himself if his daughter would be this thrilled to hear being mentioned in any conversation he had showing how important she was for him, just as Hunter seemed to care about the small vessel. It made Grimm smile a little.

 **Zelena** : Master…

 **Grimm** : Haha, I understand you.

Then the fierce hunter looked at the master of the troupe and gave him an arrogant smile. Grimm returned it, also giving the same kind of smile, because he knew what would come next.

 **Hunter** : Oh? I know you're only saying that now because you want to avoid your absolute defeat.

 **Grimm** : I was actually being generous, giving you the chance to avert a tremendous humiliation, but I’m glad to see that you are so optimistic.

 **Hunter** : Generosity would be taking it easy on you.

He barely finished his words, when both started running at neck breaking speed. Greenpath was quite the obstacle course, with several thorns growing, acidic pools, spikes on the floor and walls, with little open places to make a turn. It was the perfect place for insects that wanted to compete with each other. The two predators left the entrance of Hunter's lair at their backs and took the descending path, with Hunter descending faster for being heavier, but before Grimm could fall behind he used his cape to turn his body into a drill and come down faster. When both of them passed through the thorns and the acidic lake, Hunter seemed to be slowing down, but he was still very fast, and his footsteps were so heavy that he caused tremors where he ran. This commotion was enough to keep the smaller insects away, should they have stayed to witness the scene, they would have seen the large insect with a bush on his head and a red blur like a dancing flame near him, like a fire chasing the vegetation. The master of the troupe was no slouch either, he was fast by nature, the dance for the ritual required him to be extremely swift, he even managed to overtake Hunter at times, despite the fierce hunter running at such a crazy speed. He had to admit that if they were competing in an open area, he would have been in front of Hunter for a long time. The troupe master wasn’t going to give up on the race, and even though Grimm knew the path he had to follow, Hunter had so much experience that he knew when to go down, jump or turn, since Greenpath was his favourite place from all over Hallownest.

Then the route got very narrow, the master of the troupe thought he would have the advantage because of his smaller size, far more appropriate, but surprisingly, the big insect switched to running on four legs. Grimm finally concluded that his new friend was a wild beast, almost to the point of losing his mind. However, he was amazed to see his determination to win, so the scarlet insect increased his speed. Yet he couldn't do his best for the falls and curves he had to do, as a result the Hunter was always toe to toe with him. Then, after such a long trail without meeting any real assailants, they ended up seeing eight Moss knights hiding in front of them.

 **???** : Stop intruders!!!

In that moment, the Moss knights regretted standing in the way of those two, because Hunter and Grimm were not only willing to ignore the order altogether, but went on to mow them over, each one against four. Grimm used his claws to attack the first one ahead of him, the Moss knight placed the shield to defend himself, but Grimm's claws were able to destroy the shield with one sweep, and with the other hand the scarlet insect stuck his claws in the knight's neck. Then the troupe master bounced with his claws still penetrating his neck, and with a quick movement, he lopped off the moss warrior's head. Just as he was descending, two Moss knights pointed their nails up and tried to attack, but in an aerial maneuver, Grimm simply dodged them and landed on the ground. Taking advantage of catching them with a low guard, the scarlet insect snatched away the two nails from the knights' hands, and with a spin on the spot, he cut them in half as if they were nothing more than soft maggots. While still spinning, he created a fireball in his mouth and shot the last Moss knight who died burned in seconds.

 **Hunter** : GET OUT OF THE WAY, YOU PESTS!!!

Hunter simply swung his hands, which resulted in the death of two Moss knights that literally exploded when they collided with each other from the furious attack of the great insect. A third moss warrior would have the same end, but he was quick enough to dodge, when he saw Hunter's hand descending towards him, he only had time to raise the shield, but in the end he died buried into the ground. The fourth Moss knight had even worse luck, as he saw Hunter's mouth full of teeth coming towards him, and in one bite he died being eaten by Hunter. The fierce hunter did this just to compare the taste of an infected insect with an infection-free insect, and the result was more surprising than he imagined. The Moss knight uninfected tasted much more delicious than the last ones he ate, and the Hunter looked back sadly to see that he had missed a feast. Soon he realized that Grimm was staring at him with squinted eyes, and wordlessly both of them resumed their race.

 **Grimm:** You don't think we're going to get into trouble because we have killed these guys, do you?

 **Hunter:** Hmph... Eight less Moss Knights won't make much difference... I think.

After the brief exchange of words, both predators concentrated again on the race. Grimm thought that Hunter would take the lead for a while, because after the sudden situation they found themselves in, he was still ahead of him. But luckily for the scarlet insect, when they reached the end of the next corridor, he saw an open area, which meant that he could take the opportunity and increase his speed even more. However, the fierce hunter also started running like a quadruped, so as to not fall behind the scarlet insect. Hunter smirked for himself, knowing that that was the last open area in a long while, the next corridor required climbing and falling, movements in which he was better than Grimm. It didn’t take long until Hunter was ahead of Grimm again, the latter only huffed and tried his best to keep up with Hunter, yet he was overtaken once again. Hunter managed to lose him momentarily and missed the evil smile that appeared on Grimm’s face, it was time to show his friend a certain skill.

 **Hunter** : Hahaha! There’s no way he can win now, right Zelena?

 **Zelena** : Yes… Master…

After the words of his pupil, Hunter arrived at the next corridor. The place was full of acid lakes, but there were platforms to jump, and if those were too small for him, he could always use the Durandoos to support himself, since those creatures were capable of swimming in the acidic lakes thanks to their thick shell. Before he could jump, the big insect saw something glowing red and in an instant Grimm materialized in front of him. Startled, Hunter almost lost his footing, and Zelena nearly plucked a big handful of the leaves of his hood to avoid falling from his head.

 **Hunter** : B-but how!? How did you do that!?

Grimm only replied with a smug smirk that could only be interpreted as “Catch me if you can”. It made the fierce hunter furious. So much that he disregarded the rule about not attacking the other competitor.

 **Hunter** : YOUR PIECE OF...!!!!! I’LL KILL YOU!!!

All that the big insect had in his mind was “I’m going to bury your face in the finish line”, along with a handful of colourful insults. Hunter gave a roar of undiluted fury, and lunged towards the troupe master with the intention of grabbing him by the neck and ducking his head in the acid pool, he didn’t even care if he lost a hand because of it. However, Grimm was expecting his enraged reaction and when Hunter tried to capture him, the troupe master simply turned around and retreated without looking back. Grimm let himself fall, and Hunter followed behind, his eyes bloodshot with anger. The scarlet insect calculated on the arrival of a Durandoo that passed by the border so that his friend could have some footing and avoid falling into the acid lake, even if his friend was mad at him, that was no reason for letting him come into harm. Grimm divided himself, his body turned into countless “Grimmchildren” that looked like made of pure shadows, only one of them had a faint red glow in its eyes. Hunter had barely time to be impressed by the transformation, but his anger helped him to think fast. He stepped on a Durandoo, setting both his legs and an arm on it, and propelled himself to the ceiling. He didn’t even need to use his full strength to jump, crushing the shell of the poor Durandoo in the process, it died when the acid penetrated through the cracks. As soon as the Hunter reached the ceiling, he used his claws to hold onto it, and chased Grimm once again while clinging to the canopy. When Grimm reached the other border of the lake, the “Grimmchildren” reformed into his original form. Now having a better form to land an attack, Hunter tried to deliver a blow on him, but once again, he vanished into thin air, and Hunter cracked the wall ahead of him. The scoundrel had to be at the other side of the wall, so the hunt continued, and the big insect didn’t even think twice to jump over the next acid lake. He held onto another wall, digging his claws into it. The troupe master was standing at the top of the wall, and leisurely watching Hunter climbing. His stare made him nervous, and hurried to catch the scarlet insect. Soon, they reached a small corridor, and Hunter wasn’t giving up. Grimm was impressed with the endurance of the fierce hunter, however he wasn’t worried about being caught by him. He had a race to win and a friend to escape from.

 **Hunter** : COME BACK HERE, YOU BASTARD!!!

Hunter continued to shout several threats to the troupe master, who was simply laughing it all. They reached a point in which the scenery began to change in appearance, the green remained, but now there were some buildings that stood out next to the vegetation, and unfortunately for both, it also began to increase the amount of thorns that grew everywhere and feeble platforms that collapsed at the slightest weight. Grimm had to stop laughing, he needed to concentrate on his teleportation. The Hunter fared no better, who bit back his bloodlust to focus on avoiding any thorns, meanwhile Zelena looked like she was trying her best to sink into her master's bush hood to avoid being hit. The three noticed rocks or something that looked like giant nails, but they didn't pay attention since they had a race to finish, and at last, they could see the finish line, the entrance to a Stag station was within reach. Hunter jumped down and let gravity do the rest, all he had to do was just dodge a few platforms on the way to have a free fall. Yet, he was easily overtaken by Grimm, who looked up at him with a victorious smile. Hunter was confused, didn’t he leave the troupe master above him? Then he arrived at the Stag station entrance. Hunter felt anger flare up again when he saw that the scarlet bug had already made it to the finish line and was waiting for him with a smirk plastered on his face. The big insect, instead of landing next to the troupe master, used his momentum to crush Grimm. He was expecting such a movement, and dodged, sliding into the next corridor laughing, while the Hunter continued to run after him.

 **Hunter** : THAT’S NOT FAIR!!!

Hunter wasn’t angry enough to want to kill Grimm, although he certainly wanted to shove his face in the ground. The scarlet insect was lucky that the corridor he was passing was narrow and long, and as soon as he made it at the end, the master of the troupe jumped down. He barely registered the tremendous tremor coming right to him, and when he looked up at the origin he saw the ferocious hunter descending with his claws ready to hit Grimm. He ducked backwards just in time to avoid the big insect. The moment Hunter reached the ground, Zelena jumped out of his head and positioned herself between both predators, while giving a nasty look at Grimm. She seemed angry, but it only made the scarlet insect think she looked cute with that face. As soon as he looked up he saw Hunter’s offended face.

 **Grimm** : No matter how much you complain, I have won fair and square.

 **Hunter** : Cheater, didn't you tell me you could teleport, not to mention why you didn't use it before?

 **Zelena** : Cheater... Trickster...

 **Grimm** : I never said I wasn't able to teleport and you didn't ask. Also, you forgot to mention that the only means to reach the end of the race was by using only the limbs, so clearly, I didn't break any rules, hahaha. I simply didn't make use of it the first time because I wanted to be fair with you, because otherwise you wouldn't have the chance to even touch me, hahahaha!

Hunter let out a dry laugh. He had to admit that if Grimm had been teleporting during their fight, perhaps the result wouldn’t have ended in a draw.

 **Hunter** : Haha! You are full of tricks, what a deceptive insect.

 **Grimm** : Isn't that what you do with your camouflage? Don't you fool your preys pretending to be a bush?

Hunter turned away his face from embarrassment. The group was surprised when several mantises surrounded them, among the mantis there was a female that looked more like a plant than an insect, she was white and quite beautiful. Grimm ignored his big friend, astonished to finally see the lady he had been looking for. When their eyes met, she was looking at him with scorn. Grimm was already prepared for that stare, and in his opinion, her gaze full of hate didn’t suit that gorgeous face, yet he wasn’t anyone to judge her about it, she had many reasons to be resentful with him. However, he couldn’t care less about that, and smirked at the queen of Hallownest

 **Grimm** : It's been a long time since we last saw each other dear root. You are still more beautiful than the sunrise and more charming than the full moon.

 **White Lady** : You... Troupe Master Grimm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So did you like it?
> 
> Yes, I know that this chapter was small compared to the others, but I had decided to leave it separate so that the previous chapter didn’t get too big, and what happened in that part, it wouldn’t make much sense to add in the next chapter as it would have a different course that wouldn’t really highlight the friendship that Hunter and Grimm have.


	8. A journey in scarlet and white

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During our life, we create a strong affection for those we want to love, and a great disgust for those we want to hate and at some point, we find out who really deserved the feelings of love or hate. This also applies to the insects of Hallownest , where at times, an insect's actions may be different from what they actually feel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I know, it took too long to post a chapter, but both Lamia and I are doing our best to publish as soon as possible, and we hope you still want to continue reading this fanfic.

As soon as the White Lady spoke to Grimm, she could feel the tension in the ambient as they faced each other. The mantis seemed nervous with the pressure emanating from both of them. Hunter, on the other hand, didn’t seem to be so nervous, since he himself had an imposing aura about him. After seeing how nobody dared to act, the large insect simply made a forced cough, drawing everyone’s attention to him and somehow breaking the ice.

 **Hunter** : You must be the queen of Hallownest, am I correct?

This question made the White Lady shake her head a little as if she was woken up from being lost into some trance, but as soon she recovered, she ignored Grimm for the time being and she gave a friendly look at Hunter.

 **White Lady** : Yes, that’s me, my young man.

Hunter was surprised to be called young by that woman, yet he couldn’t talk back since she could probably be a hundred times older than him. It was then that the mantises came out of their own stupor and approached the White Lady to protect her.

 **Silver Lance** : What is your business with our Lord?

 **Grimm** : Hahaha, and I thought you would have no one else to serve you after this catastrophe. Who would have thought you would become a Lord of the mantis tribe? Or at least, the leader of a handful of them.

 **White Lady** : I was appointed recently. Now answer the question.

 **Grimm** : I only came to pay you a visit because the biggest show in Hallownest will take place soon and I wish to be the first in line to see it.

 **White Lady** : How dare you to stain Hallownest with your presence? You and your troupe are unwelcome people, you are no longer received as guests since you used our citizens to feed your Higher Being.

 **Grimm** : I don't blame you for holding such a strong opinion of us after what transpired with my father, or rather my predecessor, with your subjects. Yet haven’t you and your king done an even greater harm to the kingdom?

 **White Lady** : What are you talking about?

 **Grimm** : Don’t play dumb with me, my dear white root. Even though my troupe and me have been away for several centuries, haven’t the Pale King sacrificed far more of his citizens’ lives than us for all this time? In spite of coming back to this kingdom in the recent days, our troupe has not bothered your subjects this time around. Besides, I can feel Nightmare Essence at every corner of these lands, those pleas for mercy and heart tearing anguish that you and your dear Wyrm refused to hear. What was his motto?… Ah, yes, “No cost too great”.

The White Lady felt cornered, Grimm was digging deep into her wounds, but the white root would stand her ground.

 **White Lady** : It’s true that we faced a great loss during the years, but I never approved of the Wyrm’s ideas.

 **Grimm** : Yet, you were complicit with your silence, which is arguably worse than ignorance because you knew you could have done something, and after witnessing the mistakes only then you realized it was already…

Grimm got interrupted when he felt a hand on his shoulder, when he turned his gaze he found Hunter looking as if he were to lecture him, but he understood what he meant. He was going too far, but the scarlet insect wasn’t going to let the opportunity go away, not when he could fling some truths that were right at her face.

 **White Lady** : You are right, I never spoke up against the Wyrm. I was more enthralled with his light than any other insect, he had a great vision, but I was blind to what I had in front of me. I truly regret never showing the disapproval I felt with his actions, that’s why now I shall raise my voice to the heavens above. Let everyone know that I will fix my mistakes, and if I have to pay the price in blood, let it soak Hallownest and every kingdom in the world.

The tides had turned, and now it was Grimm who was cornered. He didn’t expect the White Lady would show such a great determination, he had imagined her as someone submissive, unable to take action, yet her defiance had pleased him, he was glad to be wrong. Those words hadn’t left him dry of arguments, nor had mitigated his desire for provocation, instead they made him admire even more the Queen of Hallownest.

 **Grimm** : I see now. I suppose Hallownest can hold some hope to rise to its old glory. It even makes me think that having another one as a monarch would make the situation much worse.

The White Lady couldn’t believe that Grimm hadn't continued his verbal offensive as before, but she kept her ground while facing his malicious smile. A snap was heard, almost as if the spell had been broken, but it was followed by a pained groan, the Hunter had flicked the scarlet insect’s neck in the back and he had grunted from the unexpected pain. Grimm gave Hunter a miffed look with his eyes squinted as if he was telling him “Are you really going to keep interfering?”. The Queen of Hallownest had to stifle a laugh, it wasn’t commonplace to see the master of the troupe fumbling and losing his composure. For her, the situation was absolutely priceless.

 **Grimm** : …Fine, fine. I’ve said what I wanted to say. You are a buzzkill, you know?

 **Hunter** : It’s not me, Zelena is quite excited to see her and wouldn’t stop poking me. I had to try something.

It took a moment for the White Lady to understand who the large insect was talking about, until she shifted her attention back to the small vessel that was coming closer to her. One minute she was holding a firm visage to confront everything coming to her, but the next she looked exultant when she turned her attention to her child. Zelena was just so cute, it reminded her of Hollow a bit when he was as little as Ghost, the only difference was the horns. She also found the name Zelena to be beautiful, it suited her child. The White Lady timidly shortened the distance, she wanted so much to hug her, but she feared that her child held some kind of resentment against her, perhaps the vessel held some grudge from being left at the Abyss. However, the White Lady was prepared for that, and she yearned to reach her daughter’s heart. She was so caught up in her worries that she almost didn’t notice the tugging at her dress, her child was looking up at her, and she seemed to be smiling. The small gesture was all she needed to melt away her apprehension, and yet she wasn’t ready.

 **Zelena** : Mama…

It was just a word, a simple word, but so filled with filial affection, it made the White Lady’s heart burst with feelings. She wondered if she had truly heard a voice, amazed to see that her child was the one who spoke. Without giving a second thought to the matter, the white root took the child in her lap and they hugged. The emotions from finally being able to hold one of her children with her own hands were so strong, that she couldn’t help herself from shedding tears of sheer happiness. The White Lady could feel a frigid liquid coming out of the eyes of her child, her daughter was crying from happiness as well. She was touched in a way she could never explain, and she was drawn to rub her face with the little one, even though the vessel’s mask was hard, it was finely smooth and her small body was hot and cold simultaneously, how could she have ever convinced herself that vessels were undead when life seemed to emanate from them? The world ceased to exist for the White Lady, it was only her and her child, and that was what truly mattered. As soon as she stopped the hug, the Queen of Hallownest saw how happy her daughter was to see her, shedding tears filled with Void, emanating an aura of pure joy. The painful existence of the White Lady was gone in an instant, she could hardly wait to be reunited with her other children, and she would also welcome Hornet as her own daughter, the child of the Beast didn’t deserve to be alone.

 **Silver Spear** : My Lord, please excuse my interference, what are your orders regarding these outsiders?

The White Lady turned to see that the mantises, including Silver Spear, were endearingly looking at the scene, although there was another reason other than empathy for it. The queen of Hallownest had been releasing her energy accidentally, shining like pure starlight and making the soil flourish with flowers. She was after all, a fertility goddess, granting life was in her very core. She also took notice that the one called Hunter had been charmed as well, the only one who seemed unaffected was Grimm, the scarlet bug still had that wicked expression of his etched on the face. The truth was that deep inside, Grimm was just as moved as everyone else, watching the scene and washed over by the white root’s energy, he felt the impulse to be with his daughter again. He wanted to see her so much in that moment, but he couldn’t let the others catch onto what was going through his mind. Then the White Lady gave Silver Spear a serene look, he understood right away what she meant with it.

 **White Lady** : Return to collect your belongings, there are no enemies in here.

Once the words were said, the other mantises stirred up and went back to dismantle their camp. The White Lady would play with her little girl, her great source of joy, if only Grimm hadn’t approached her with a serious face. She was confused, because it wasn’t like him to look so sombre, dropping his distinctive malicious aura.

 **Grimm** : I need to speak with you alone, my White Lady.

The White Lady was going to reject him right away, she wished to spend more time with her child, but when she caught up her name being called in such a no nonsense tone she felt a bit taken aback, his serious demeanour was surprisingly rather attractive coming from the master of the troupe, even if she didn’t like him around. The queen of Hallownest had to admit that the scarlet insect was a handsome individual with an equally charming presence, yet she was very aware of what he hid behind those. This time, however, he didn’t come to wallow on her past mistakes. The white root left the little vessel on the floor and she went back to Hunter’s side. After parting with her child, the White Lady struggled to walk near the troupe master, once they arrived he made sure they were away from prying eyes and ears. Without any doubt, whatever Grimm was going to tell her, it was something meant to be kept a secret. Something the others shouldn’t know or hear. Now that she was so close to him, she noticed that in this form she remained taller than him, still, he bore quite the imposing aura.

 **White Lady** : What is it that requires this secrecy?

 **Grimm** : On the first place, I see that you don’t seem very concerned with the fact that Zelena is able to speak.

 **White Lady** : If the circumstances were like before, I would be happy yet worried. But now that the infection is gone, I don’t see any reason to be anxious about the Old Light corrupting my children. Now I can enjoy the fact that they can talk. Nevertheless, I am perplexed with how that is possible at all. Pray tell… was it you who gave Zelena a name?

 **Grimm** : No, that’s courtesy of Hunter, he named that vessel a long time ago.

 **White Lady** : It’s a beautiful name, although it is very feminine. I had been thinking of more neutral names for my children since they are sexless.

 **Grimm** : Heh, I figured you wouldn't notice right away.

 **White Lady** : What do you mean with that?

 **Grimm** : From what he told me, he just used the name Zelena because he isn’t good with names, but decided to keep the name when he found out today that she had started to smell like a female.

The White Lady had been mildly confounded with her child being able to speak, and now she couldn’t help herself from being flabbergasted to find out that her daughter had genitalia, something that vessels shouldn’t be able to have. However, that new information made her more thrilled at the prospect that her other children could gain them as well.

 **White Lady** : Today has been a day filled to the brim with surprises, but I suspect you didn’t need privacy just to talk about this issue, am I right?

 **Grimm** : Indeed. There’s one more thing I have to share with you and I believe you could help me solve my concerns.

The White Lady noticed that Grim had been serious for a while, but now he looked like he had something grave in mind, something truly important.

 **Grimm** : Zelena told Hunter and me that she had died. Losing a Shade for a vessel is becoming eventually a living unmoving corpse, so when her Shade separated from her shell she got a glimpse at the happenings within the Void. It was united, and that force was the responsible for the reunion of her shell and Shade. I’m almost sure that this was the reason for why she gained the ability to speak and her genitalia.

 **White Lady** : Grimm, that’s impossible. You know well that the Void is an amalgamation of beings and they don’t obey anyone. Despite their inseparability, they are at odds, in a constant fight for dominance.

 **Grimm** : What if, despite the incredible low chance of it, they have found a Higher Being? Wouldn’t the Void unite and obey?

The White Lady wanted to say something, but her voice failed her. She didn’t expect such a situation, and much less coming from Grimm. The question lingered heavy in the air.

 **White Lady** : Yes, in that case, they would serve a Higher Being with blind loyalty. Perchance do you have any suspicions?

 **Grimm** : I met Ghost in that corner of the dream realm the godseekers call Godhome. I found their fighting ritual invitation so charming, that I couldn’t help myself and faced him in combat.

Dumbstruck with sudden realization, the White Lady’s mind reeled, piecing together a plausible answer to Grimm’s musings along with her own. She was aware of the godseekers and their Godhome, despite never having a direct connection with their minds. She had wanted to punish herself unperturbed, and she wasn’t interested in the power their synchronized minds’ worship brought about. Those who sparked their interest became powerful versions of themselves in the dream realm. It was no wonder that for that reason, the Wyrm had locked up and forced hibernation on Godseeker shortly after knowing of her existence and her people’s power. Godseeker was a menace, both because her mind could be a gateway for Radiance’s freedom and because, being the impressionable bunch of religious loons the godseekers were, if they started to worship Radiance, she would become an unstoppable powerful goddess, the god of gods. Nothing would ever contain her again. However, if what the troupe master said was true, if he had participated in their collective dream, that realm of pantheons filled with attentive parishioners, that could only mean that Godseeker had been freed of her cocoon. The scarlet insect had mentioned as well that Ghost had been present, the queen of Hallownest, knowing her son, deduced that it had been him who opened Godseeker’s cocoon. With his dreamnail, he could access Godhome and could have challenged the pantheons. Still, the likelihood of him actually triumphing over the Old Light in such an adverse place, with the odds so clearly against him…

 **White Lady** : Say, Grimm, while at Godhome, did my son defeat you?

 **Grimm** : It was a rather accurate re-enactment of our dances. And I must say he has truly mastered them, even at my peak with the Nightmare’s Heart power. The last time I saw him was at one Pantheon meant to crown the god of gods, as my Nightmare King self, I ranked pretty high. From that position, I managed to find out that there were two others above me. I believe that one of them was the Old Light, but perhaps we are precipitating ourselves in believing that the new Higher Being could be Ghost. I certainly perceived another Void entity above me after Ghost surpassed me, that Void being may have become the new dominant, but the chance of being Ghost is the most likely because the infection has ended in a way that none of us could have predicted. And I doubt that any other Void being would be so kind to spare Radiance.

 **White Lady** : Do you mean to say that my son became the Higher Being of the Void?

The impression from such an event was too much for the White Lady, she almost collapsed on the floor had it not been for Grimm to hold her on time. Her face became a little flushed from his touch and the pose they were in. He was above her and she was on his arms, midway to either a bridal carry or to be placed on the floor. They quickly fixed their positions, with Grimm leaving her sitting on the floor. The white root could have sworn that she saw the master of the troupe blushing as well, but she dismissed it as a trick of the fiery light that emanated from his eyes. Once the White Lady regained her composure, she continued.

 **White Lady** : That would explain why Zelena talks, and why she became a female. That Higher Being who controls the Void at will, is doing what the Wyrm believed to be impossible. We need to find my son sooner than ever.

 **Grimm** : You shouldn’t be so worried about him. Ghost is not like the other vessels, and you know that.

The White Lady had to agree with him. Ghost was exceptionally remarkable on his feats, however she was still his mother and her drive to look after her children remained. There was simply no way _not_ to worry about him. However, something distracted the Queen of Hallownest from her own thoughts, a pungent smell she was unfamiliar with lingered on the air, invading and polluting her nostrils, why was she now aware of it? The white root shook her head, looking with disgust at Grimm yet covering her face with her hand to make it less apparent when she realized that it came from him. She had grown accustomed to Ogrim’s strong odour, but Grimm’s had surpassed the Dung Defender’s scent several times over. The white root feared that her granddaughter, Grimm’s offspring, would ever give off such a foul smell, she would need to make sure that moment never came.

 **White Lady** : Grimm, have you neglected your hygiene as of lately? There’s a certain sulphuric odour about you.

Grimm’s face contorted into a furious expression, catching off guard the White Lady, she never thought she would see his anger from this close. The troupe master was still fuming from the argument between him and Hunter, and now the White Lady had unknowingly repeated the same insult that the large insect had thrown at him. Her words stung.

 **Grimm** : Hush it! You have no right to criticise me! As if you didn’t reek of decomposition and old earth.

After those words he stormed off, to where he left Hunter. The White Lady was surprised to see that side of Grimm’s personality, he was less calculating than she expected. Once he had left her alone, the white root got a whiff of her clothes and made a face, fanning her hands to make it go away. She _did_ smell of old earth and decay as Grimm said, and there were some more unsavoury smells as well. She was almost grateful for not hearing it from the scarlet insect.

 **White Lady** : I should have bitten my tongue when I had the chance.

As time passed on, most of the mantis had already taken their belongings. Meanwhile, Grimm had stayed apart from the hustle talking with Hunter. The White Lady had been playing with Zelena, she was over the moon, overjoyed with happiness. She always thought that having a child would be the most wonderful thing in the world, and now that she could experience it for herself it was even better than expected. The little vessel was the cutest child she could have asked for, of course her other children were also cute, Hollow had been cute when he was small, but he couldn’t spend much time with her because he had to be “pure”. Ghost was also cute, but he acted like a miniature adult, he already had a heavy weight on his shoulders and acted with responsibility, and had seen things that had torn away his childish innocence. The White Lady found out thanks to Ghost that he was, in fact, older than Hollow, the chosen vessel only grew bigger because he absorbed an absurd amount of Soul, forced to grow at a breakneck speed. All because the Pale King was in a hurry to obtain a perfect vessel. She remembered when she questioned the king the vessel’s rapid grow, that had been one of the days she truly felt anger with him. Yet, she restrained herself on showing such an emotion. Because once she reunited with her dear children she was resolute to pamper her little sprouts, she would indulge them like kids whether they wanted it or not, the white root was set on giving them their lost childhood, she would even extend this treatment to Hornet. She recalled when the young spider was still a mischievous little girl, everything she did or said gave her breathing room for her maternal anguish, holding onto the hope that her dream of having children would become true. That small spider lost the gleam of her eyes when her mother fell to her eternal slumber. Knowing that, the white root would find the way to give her back that sparkle Hornet had. The White Lady, while she was planning on how to find her children, was approached by Silver Spear

 **Silver Spear** : My Lord, all the mantis have packed up. We can continue the march, we only need your directions.

 **White Lady** : Thank you kindly for the report, Silver Spear. I think though, that they may be exhausted, tell them to take a rest if they wish, and send some scouts to hunt for food for those who are hungry. However, I would request that the prey has to be non-sentient.

 **Silver Spear** : But my lady, I thought you wanted to see your children as soon as possible. I am grateful for your consideration of our well-being, but we can handle it. Fatigue isn’t a problem.

 **White Lady** : I am aware, but I need the mantis to be fully recovered. I took notice that none of you had a rest or ate since Grey Claw appointed me Lord, and I would assume that you are famishing. So for now, take a break and regain your strengths. I have the feeling that my children will come here.

 **Silver Spear** : My Lord, are you certain?

 **White Lady** : Yes, my dear Silver Spear, you can trust in me.

Silver Spear couldn’t help flushing a little with the gentle way his lord treated them. He still hadn’t gotten used to it, in fact, none of the adult mantis had adjusted to that attitude yet, only the younglings had an easier time accepting her affectionate demeanour, yet no one was making complaints. Even though the White Lady was kind, they could feel the great power she was exuding, which made them wonder “Could someone so powerful be as well so benevolent and warm-hearted?”. Although this question lingered in their thoughts, no mantis talked about it.

Once Silver Spear bowed out, the White Lady returned her attention to her beloved Zelena. The two wouldn’t just play, the White Lady encouraged her to talk and she delighted in the little girl’s beautiful voice. Gradually, it derived into a proper conversation, with Zelena telling her mother about her life with the Hunter. A smile timidly appeared on the white root’s face when she was convinced that underneath the cruel and aloof exterior of that insect, he had a heart capable of being a loving father, affectionate and protective of a child he barely knew. She didn’t mind that her daughter had chosen him as a paternal figure, because her biological father never cared about the vessels. The White Lady still felt shame to have been in a relationship with someone so insensitive, but she had made a point to move on. She wouldn’t need the Pale King to be happy, and the only thing she was thankful for, was that she bore precious children like the little vessel that sat on her lap.

Zelena kept on chatting, telling the queen of the unfortunate encounter she had with a warrior donning a red cloak. Her opponent had been so strong that she ended dying at her hands. Anxiousness crept up on the White Lady, how could she speak about Hornet? If it weren’t for the infection and the slim but perilous chance of an inappropriate vessel usurping the Hollow Knight and unleashing Radiance, Hornet wouldn’t had been forced to do this atrocity with her siblings. She would have loved them as much as the Queen of Hallownest loved her children.

 **Zelena** : Girl… Scary… But I... Want... To be... Like... Her...

 **White Lady** : Really? Why do you want to be like her, my sweetie?

 **Zelena** : Girl… Wasn’t… Afraid… She was… Strong… Fearless… I… Want… Too…

At least, the White Lady was relieved to hear that even though her daughter was afraid of Hornet, she didn’t hate her. Zelena even admired some qualities of the young spider, so at least there was a faint hope that they could get along some day, if Hornet’s kill could be forgiven. It wouldn’t be easy for either of them, but the white root would be there to help them reconcile.

Then, a certain troublesome individual decided to come by, although perhaps his intentions were not that unpleasant this time around. Grimm approached them with his characteristic smile and right behind him the ferocious Hunter. The White Lady didn’t feel uneasy with the large insect, in fact, she could even enjoy his company, but the troupe master was another story.

 **Grimm** : How much longer do you expect to remain in this place?

The White Lady prepared her mental defences, distrust and animosity slowly on the raise. She might tolerate Grimm’s presence, but his voice alone was enough to stir her ire. Still she would remain calm, resist the urge to crush the scarlet insect’s head. She wouldn’t give into those primitive instincts, it had been ages since she was a young root and she was going to hold herself to a behaviour befitting of her position as a queen. She would set an example of maturity, more now that she wasn’t able to move properly in her new form.

 **Grimm** : Let me guess, the Mask Maker?

 **White Lady** : How come you know of him? No foreigner could be acquainted with him given his circumstances.

 **Grimm** : The masks for my troupe don’t materialize from thin air, my queen. He is likely sitting on a stockpile of masks for future members, enough to last for one lifetime of my kin, at least.

 **White Lady** : What means did you use to convince him to create such an absurd amount of masks? It had never been mentioned in my briefings that he busied himself with this kind of trade.

 **Grimm** : My apologies, but I’m going to leave you playing the guessing game, I’m not uttering a word about it. And besides, he is a discrete individual, one can trust him to produce such a massive shipment so quickly without worrying about bothersome questions.

The master of the troupe couldn’t find the reason why he was behaving this way, but riling up the White Lady was too much of a treat to pass, and he was hungry. To see her gaze on him, defiant and unyielding, offered him a delightful vision. The white root looked at Grimm with a thinly veiled annoyance, nerves alight with the anticipation of violence. She had endured much worse insults and mockeries, but Grimm’s words got under her skin effortlessly, the troupe master agitated her to the point that she could plunge from her stand of serenity and tranquillity. He could compel her to show the emotions she carefully hid from her people and her friends.

Hunter made a signal to the White Lady, allowing her to break the infuriated spell she was under. The large insect wanted to know about who they were talking about, but this interruption was also a planned action to remove the tension in the ambiance.

 **Hunter** : Who is this insect you are speaking of?

 **White Lady** : He is exactly what the name says, my dear. He makes masks for those who need a face or those who want to change theirs. If there’s an insect capable of this complex craft, to create a mask that turns into a face, it would be none other than him. My children, the vessels, have a peculiar body, so they could be at a greater risk than normal insects if their shell cracks. If the worst happens and they break, they can still be saved if they get a mask to be fixed. I believe that with the recent happening of the Shades reuniting with their bodies, there’s a chance some of my children will seek him to become whole before they run out of time, since the Mask Maker is capable of such a thing.

 **Grimm** : He is a remnant of the Ancient civilization, the Void worshipers. After the Wyrm founded Hallownest, he moved his home to the kingdom capital, where he was loved and respected for the help he provided. But, the King wasn’t too keen on having others giving the same blessing he did with his beacon, so he forced him into exile. It was a disaster for the insects that needed a mask to leave the boundaries of his power, and the deliveries of the Mask Maker weren’t fast enough as a result of being undercover. The infection took hold first of the folk that weren’t close enough to the light of the Wyrm, the ones that were more in need of said masks. Without a strong identity to fend off the allure of the hivemind, they fell into the pits of insanity and the carnage followed afterwards. I find it hysterical how the Pale King was regarded as pure and honourable, and yet he was cleaning his hands from being involved with the sticky situation.

 **White Lady** : That was a rather imprudent decision he took. However, I was relieved to see that the Mask Maker was welcomed in Deepnest. In the long term, his masks helped them to maintain their minds sound. Despite the ferocious tendencies of those beasts, despite being ruled by the law of the strongest, they gave him a place to sustain his craft. It was a pity that this incident soured the relationship between both our kingdoms.

 **Grimm** : Ohhh? You know, I simply can’t get enough of you not defending your beloved Wyrm anymore. Such a striking contrast with your past “he is perfection incarnate” opinion on him.

While the White Lady was angry with Grimm’s comment, she was getting angrier at what the Pale King had done. Her resent towards all the times she had to back him up was growing, why did she do it after all she had been through? Hallownest also had to endure his harshness as well. He hadn’t been there when the people needed him, when _she_ needed him, it was always the other way around. Those days were gone, and now she had her children, to whom she would devote herself.

 **White Lady** : Although he had in mind the prosperity of his kingdom, the harm he inflicted on those he sacrificed for this goal was unforgivable. For now, I think the time to criticise his mistakes is past its due. Therefore, I shall protect what matters to me, my children and my people. His afterglow is all that remains in this world, the moment he departed from us, he did as well from my heart.

The Queen of Hallownest thought that her words would irritate the troupe master, that he was denied of watching her crumbling like a heartbroken soul. Yet, his reaction was the opposite of what she anticipated, Grimm’s smile widened as if she said just what he wanted to hear. His gaze was smouldering, to the point the White Lady even flushed a bit and turned her face when she felt the warmth.

 **Grimm** : And yet despite that endearing claim about caring about your children, why aren’t you using your kingdom reaching powers to locate them, white root?

The White Lady gave Grimm a sullen look. He was with that aggravating attitude again and frustrating her. This time the strong urge to pay back wouldn’t get ignored.

 **White Lady** : When I changed into my new form, I lost control of my abilities. Everything out of my normal sight is hazy, very difficult to detect. But since you are so willing to find them, why don’t we join efforts? Surely you are more than capable of sensing the energy of insects, and my children no doubt will be easier because of the Void within them. Or... perchance you could use your connection to the dream realm to figure out the whereabouts of Radiance, isn’t that right, scarlet flame?

Grimm almost lost his cool again, but he hid his humiliation with far more success this time. He wouldn’t let the White Lady see him like that once more.

 **Grimm** : While certainly, I am able to sense Radiance, something unforeseen must have happened with her and our connection seems to have been severed. I can safely say that death was not the cause, because her brilliance isn’t gone, but now she is a tiny speck of light among a constantly moving sea of candles, it’s nearly impossible to pinpoint where she is. As for the energy of the insects, let me clarify that what I sense is their internal flames, the harrows they hold in their hearts, sadly your children are not any different to other insects in that regard, attempting to find them like that in this vast kingdom is the same as searching for a specific tree in a forest.

 **White Lady** : Then, how did you find my daughter amidst the exuberant Greenpath?

 **Grimm** : Lady Luck decided I deserved such a fortuity encounter. My little stroll in the greenery awoke my curiosity, and thus I came across Hunter and his protégée.

 **Hunter** : In other words, he got lost because he hadn’t the slightest idea of where to go and fell right into my… he found himself at my home. He should develop his sense of direction more.

 **White Lady** : Oh? It’s that so?

 **Zelena** : It’s... true...

Despite knowing it was rather petty of her, the White Lady was delighted to hear about Grimm’s shortcomings. In fact, she loved that titbit about his inexperience, she could make him lost his way in the gardens while she watched and surely he would be making the same expression he was having now, the master of the troupe was looking at Hunter with a mix of anger and frustration, so different from his usual sly and wicked ways. Watching his mild distress was rare and the Queen of Hallonest savoured the moment, for some reason she was really enjoying seeing the scarlet insect being inconvenienced, it was unparalleled satisfaction. While the White Lady managed to hide her smile with enough discretion, Grimm was thinking quickly about how to save face, but the truth had been exposed and there was little he could do. The Hunter and his big mouth had landed him in quite the predicament, and despite Grimm’s murderous intent all he managed was to direct him a glare to which the large insect just responded with a vengeful smile, muttering “You reap what you sow, cheater”.

And so concluded their conversation, the White Lady was pleased with it despite having Grimm around. It didn’t take long until the mantis came back with their hunt, and everyone gathered to eat. The guests of honour, a Higher Being, the former vessel of a Higher Being and a hunter trained to live for long periods without sustenance, none of them were made of stone when it came to food in spite of their relatively small necessity for it. The white root even though she had the same qualities as a plant, including those involved with nutrition, in the different forms she took she would include as well a mouth and learned to eat insect meat. That in itself wasn’t a problem, since other plants were able to do the same, but she liked the meat to be cooked beforehand. Grudgingly she ended up asking Grimm to do it, and after a tirade of goading and snarky remarks he complied with her request. The food was served and they dug into it, Grimm and the Queen of Hallownest had the best eating etiquette when compared to most of the other insects, and in their direct antithesis, Hunter had already wolfed down his share. Zelena also wanted to try the food even though she was a vessel, as a result the White Lady discovered that vessels had a mouth, very similar to the insects that had no face, it was below the mask part of the face, the Void had reshaped the shell by the looks of it. This made the White Lady even more thrilled about her daughter than she was before, because now she was able to spoil her with treats. The mantis children were jealous after watching the Queen feeding her daughter, and came to her asking to do the same thing for them, and the White Lady didn’t refuse, she couldn’t say no to the little ones.

Once rested and with their stomach filled, they were finally prepared to depart. But as soon as they reached one of the entrances of the Gardens, the crowd stopped in their tracks at the rumbling sound of a fight, two figures were colliding, with the energy of Soul emanating from them. Everyone was amazed by such power, the two insects were absolutely impressive. The mantis’ fighting instincts kicked in quickly and they assumed defensive positions in front of the Queen of Hallownest, ready to protect their lord at all costs. Grimm and Hunter took the lead, preparing to be the first ones to attack the strangers, meanwhile the White Lady was trying to create a seal of binding to protect Zelena and the mantis younglings, despite their efforts to join the fight. With a strong gust of wind that pushed a bit back the insects, the mysterious figures finally revealed themselves still locked into their furious fight against each other. Everyone who was watching stared in shock as they recognized the combatants.

 **White Lady** : What in the name of all living beings…

 **Grimm** : My! That’s a quite surprising spectacle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, did you like it?
> 
> I believe some may have noticed certain things in this chapter and I want to know if the theories you imagine for the next chapter are at most similar to what we planned hehe


End file.
